Balancing Act: Civil War
by sweets10
Summary: Kronos is dead, but he was only a pawn in Gaea's much larger game. Under her control Rome has marched against Greece in a bitter conflict leaving death and misery in its wake. With no one left to trust and no way back, Jason must lead his friends in search of Percy Jackson. Should they fail Olympus will burn and with it the world. AU. Sequel to BA. Warning: Language. ON TEMP HIATUS
1. Prologue

It was the sound of blood dripping onto the floor that woke Lupa. Her left eye was swollen shut, and ichor trickled down her cheek. The wolf goddess tried to move, but a sharp pain shot up through her shoulder. She groaned and resisted the urge to move anymore. Her arm was obviously broken. Out of her one good eye, Lupa could just make out the small room. There was no light, but she hardly needed any to see. The walls were a faded orange color with thick grease stains. In front of her, the bars of her prison were rusted; the metal peeling.

Only a few days earlier, the Twelfth Legion Fulminata had charged the Titan stronghold at Mt. Othrys. Even without two of the strongest demigods in Jason Grace and Mathan Foley, the Romans stood strong. They made quick work of the monsters at the base of the mountain before making their way to the actual fortress. At the top, a single monster was holding up the sky as Atlas stood in front of his army. Reyna had led the Romans in their charge. The battle was bloody. Hundreds of Romans fell to the Titan army, and in particular, to Atlas' spear. Lupa was forced to stand back and watch as her beloved Romans were crushed by the Titans.

When all hope seemed to be lost, Atlas pulled his forces back towards the fortress. Reyna called the Romans back as well in order to regroup, before the Titans lifted up a white flag of surrender. Lupa had been wary about a trap and told Reyna as such, but the praetor was determined to capture Mt. Othrys. The rest of the day passed by as a blur to Lupa. One moment she was headed into the castle behind the Roman centurions and Reyna, and the next she was chained in this hell hole with her body bloody and broken. She had been right, was all she could think. The Titans had hoisted up a false flag of surrender in order to put the Romans under a false sense of security. When the Roman leaders had entered the fortress, they had been ambushed.

Lupa felt a tear run down her cheek. Reyna, the centurions, possibly the rest of Rome was now dead or enslaved. She had failed Rome.

"Lupa, Lupa, Lupa," came a coarse voice. Lupa narrowed her eye but could not move otherwise. "You should have known better than to stand in my way."

Lupa growled deep in her throat, but immediately fell into a coughing fit. Her arm exploded with pain making her slump farther against the wall, eye shut tightly.

"Oh, how the mighty have fallen," the voice said again. "You could have made this easier on yourself, Lupa. You could have joined us."

Lupa coughed up ichor and took a deep, painful breath. "I would never join you."

The voice laughed. It sent fear shivering down Lupa's spine.

"Soon. You will soon."

"Never. I'll never join you, Gaea."

"Oh I think you will," said Gaea. With a wave of her hand, Lupa was pulled back to a sitting position, and her left eye was healed. Lupa blinked a few times before glaring at the primordial goddess.

"What makes you so sure of that?"

"Because I have your precious Rome under my control now."

Lupa tried not to show her emotions, but she felt her stomach clench painfully. Gaea grinned evilly.

"You think that your legionnaires will rescue you? You're sorely mistaken. Isn't she, Reyna?"

Lupa's eyes widened. Reyna stepped into her line of sight, a smirk plain on her face.

"Hello, Lupa," Reyna said. "You've looked better."

"You'll pay for this!" growled Lupa before coughing up some more ichor. Reyna shook her head, still smiling alongside Gaea.

"I doubt that. You see, Rome is supporting Gaea completely."

"How _dare_ you?" Lupa hissed. Reyna shrugged and turned to Gaea.

"Gaea offered us an offer we couldn't refuse and the senate voted unanimously in favor of it." She turned back to the imprisoned goddess. "Now you have a choice. Join us and you'll be promised a seat on the new Olympian council."

"And if I refuse?"

"That will be the last choice you'll ever make."

Lupa eyed them for a moment. Sweat began to bead on her brow, the hairs on her neck rising on end. She literally felt like a cornered animal; something she had never felt before. The very thought of treason was foreign to her. All of her existence had been for one purpose: to serve Rome and the Olympians. Gabriel had given her the important task of looking after Rome after he left. Despite her anger towards her father, Lupa could never willingly defy him. But this was a completely different situation. Reyna was threatening her with her life. _Is that even possible? I'm a goddess_ , thought Lupa to herself. She wasn't sure if she could risk it. Gaea was obviously powerful despite having been in a deep slumber for several millennium. She must be if she could have brainwashed all of Rome; particularly the senate. Lupa grimaced. She had no choice. She wouldn't fail Rome. She would fight till the end to protect it. After a moment she nodded.

"I'll join you. But not because I want a seat on the Olympian council." Gaea smiled, her eyes sparkling with unmasked glee. "My duty is to Rome, and if Rome is supporting you, then I will too."

Gaea waved her hand once more and Lupa felt all of her wounds heal. She hauled herself up to her feet and rubbed her newly healed arm.

"We will make Olympus pay for its crimes, Lupa," she said with a tyrannic grin as she opened the door to Lupa's cell. "Together, we will kill every last one of the gods."

 **A/N: I am incredibly sorry for taking so long. The last week has been hectic and did not give me any time to write this story. Unfortunately, this short little teaser is all I have been able to get done this past week. Thank you for your patience, and keep your eyes open for the first chapter of Balancing Act: Civil War.**

 **I promise you all the next chapter will be much longer!**


	2. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer (since I forgot last chapter): I do not own Percy Jackson or anything that came from Rick Riordan. I also do not own Star Wars or anything else that might make a cameo in this story.**

The man's screams echoed through the forest, but no one heard him. There were no birds, no animals nearby. Even the tree nymphs had disappeared deep into the forest. The man cried out again, his screams being wracked by his sobs.

"Now, now let's not cry," said the woman behind him. "Tell us what we want to know and this will all be over."

"I told you! I don't know anything!" the man said. Fresh tears poured down his cheeks mixing with the blood from his broken nose. The woman slashed at his arm with a knife. He screamed again.

"Oh, but you do. A little bird told us that you know quite a lot."

"I don't!"

The woman grabbed him by the collar of his tattered shirt, putting the edge of the blade up to his neck. His eyes widened as a thin bead of blood pooled on the knife.

"Okay! Okay! I'll tell you! Just let me go!"

The woman smiled saucily. "That's better."

"They are planning something. Something big," he said. His words came quickly and jumbled. "A large group of around a hundred are headed north to kidnap someone. Someone important."

"Who?" the woman asked. She pressed the blade into his neck. The man chocked a sob and frantically looked around.

"I don't know! I don't know! I swear on the Styx I don't know!" Thunder roared in the distance. The woman eyed him for a moment before backing away.

"Such a shame," she said. An evil smirk appeared on her face. "Such a terrible shame."

"L-let me go! I told you everything!" the man cried. As he screamed he was engulfed in a silver light. There before the woman, instead of a man, sat a small rabbit with a pair of antlers.

"Zoe, do as he asked. Let the poor fool go," came a voice from behind the woman. Zoe nodded, her evil smile still on her face. She slashed the bonds holding the jackelope in place and watched it run away as fast as possible.

"Thalia, it's your turn," said the voice. Another girl stepped into the clearing, a bow and arrow in hand. Thalia notched the arrow, pulled back the drawstring, and aimed at the jackelope. With a sharp intake, she let the arrow fly, watching with amusement as it struck the small creature. Thalia put the bow around her shoulder, placed the arrow in her quiver and ran over to it.

"Through the heart," she said. Her voice was laced with pride. A young girl of around twelve years old with fiery auburn hair stepped forward.

"Well done, Thalia. That was a solid shot," said Artemis, the goddess of the hunt. Thalia smiled and bowed just as a group of eighty other girls all dressed in silver hunting gear stepped out. "Phoebe, Atalanta, and Juniper, you three are in charge of hunting for our dinner tonight. The rest of you, set up camp."

The girls worked with military precision to carry out their duties. Zoe watched her mistress walk away towards a small creek. She followed a few feet behind, though she said nothing. Artemis knelt by the creek and dipped her hand into the water. Flicking her hand back out, she created a thin mist.

"Oh Iris, goddess of the rainbow, show me Zeus," Artemis said. She tossed a golden drachma into the water and watched the rainbow swirl to form an image.

"What's the meaning of this Artemis? I am busy," came a gravelly voice.

"We found a Roman courier, father," said Artemis. "They are planning on kidnapping someone important."

Zeus stroked his beard. The past few months had been very stressful for the Olympians. Not only had they lost Perseus Gabriel Jackson, but the Romans had committed treason of the highest form. No one had seen it coming. The Romans were arguably more loyal than the Greeks. Even when Nero was emperor, the Twelfth Legion continued to defend Rome and the gods. There was something larger at hand. Larger than the Titan uprising.

"Do we know who it is?" asked Zeus. Artemis shook her head.

"The courier swore on the Styx that he knew nothing."

Zeus swore making thunder blast through the air and lightening flash in the sky.

"Dammit all to Hades!" he roared. "Head north, Artemis. Go to the farthest point north you can go. Make sure the Romans stay away from Alaska."

Artemis bowed her head and slashed through the rainbow. She turned around and sighed as she noticed Zoe.

"Milady?" Zoe asked. Artemis walked over to her and put her hand on her shoulder.

"Tomorrow we head up north to Washington state."

Zoe nodded and followed Artemis back to the hunters' camp. "Are you alright, milady?"

Artemis nodded, glancing up at the sky where the stars twinkled brightly.

"I'll be fine. I got over it the first time; I'll get over it this time."

Zoe frowned but said nothing. Artemis never spoke of her feelings and Zoe wouldn't force her to start now. They were all hurting by Percy's death. The only thing keeping them together was the memory of his life and everything he did to protect them and Olympus.

"Milady, who do you think the Romans are targeting?" asked Thalia when they arrived back at camp. Thalia and a few other hunters were sitting around a rather large bonfire while the rest were finishing their chores. The hunting dogs lay in their tent by the fire waiting patiently for the meat to arrive.

"I don't know," said Artemis. She took a seat by the fire, Zoe sitting beside her. "But if I were to guess, it would be either Mathan or Jason. I do not doubt the Romans are furious with their abandonment."

Thalia paled at the thought of the Romans targeting her brother, but it made sense. Jason had been one of the praetors at Camp Jupiter, answering only to the senate and the gods. Towards the end of the Titan War, he and Mathan, a son of Vulcan, had defected to the Greek side in order to aid in the defense of Olympus. When the battle was over, both had decided to remain at Camp Half-Blood rather than face the senate.

"What if it's one of the gods?" asked one of the hunters.

Zoe shook her head. "That wouldn't make sense. It would be nearly impossible to capture one of the Olympians, and even if they did what then? What's the purpose in capturing an Olympian?"

"To get them on their side?" another hunter reasoned.

"No, Zoe is right. It doesn't make sense. Any Olympian would be stronger than the Romans. They wouldn't be able to force them to change sides so easily," said Thalia. "Right, milady?"

The hunters turned to Artemis who sat in quiet thought.

"Milady?" asked Thalia again. Artemis turned to her.

"I think Teodora is correct," she said after a moment. "But I don't think that the Romans are going after an Olympian."

"So a minor god then?" asked Zoe. Artemis nodded.

"But which god makes sense?" Thalia asked. Artemis rubbed her eyes wearily.

"That's the question isn't it?"

A rustle in the forest behind them broke them out of the conversation and they all turned to see Phoebe, Juniper, and Atalanta returning with a deer and several hares.

"Let's eat girls!" shouted Phoebe. The hunters cheered and crowded around them to get to the food. Artemis slowly stood up to help them prepare the meal. She had a dark feeling that they would find out who the Romans were after very, very soon.

[LINEBREAK]

"So the Romans are going after someone?"

"That's what appears to be the case, Jason, yes."

"Faex," cursed Jason. Mathan snickered but immediately returned to his stoic look after a quick glare. "They're coming for us."

"We can't be sure of that," Chiron said. "All we know is that they're kidnapping someone important."

Jason stared down at the map before them. The map had several markers, pointing out different outposts. After the Titan War, the counselors at Camp Half-Blood realized it would be important to put up military camps and outposts throughout the country. It was a bold move since their numbers were thin, but it had paid off. By having an increased number of camps, more demigods were able to join the camp. Plus, it improved the Greek's defense. From the Kansas-Missouri border all the way to Maine, the Greeks had thirty outposts and camps scattered throughout. They even had two in Texas.

"The Romans won't know where we are, Jason," Mathan said. "Unless there are any Roman spies in our camps, but Hecate made sure that there aren't."

Jason nodded. With the Olympian victory over Kronos, Hecate and many of the other minor gods turned their loyalties back to the Olympians. As a sign of good faith, Hecate developed a Greek equivalent to the Roman's tattoo. The Greek tattoo served two main purposes. The first was simply to indicate that the demigod was Greek, but also it was enchanted. Hecate made a deal with Lady Styx that the owner of the tattoo would be mortally bound to Olympus. Should anyone wearing the tattoo commit treason against the Olympians or any of the Greeks, they would be killed as though they had broken a swear on the river Styx. Jason and Mathan had both managed to get Hecate to remove their Roman tattoos and replace them with the Greek brand.

"You're right, but that just makes things more complicated," Jason said. "If not us then who are the Romans targeting?"

"Jason, you said your patron is Hera correct?" asked Chiron. Jason nodded slowly.

"Juno."

"Juno, right," Chiron corrected himself.

"What are you thinking, Chiron?" Mathan asked. Chiron shook his head and wheeled himself around to the other end of the map; towards the Roman side.

"I wonder if the Romans are targeting Juno. If they manage to capture her they'll be able to get to you, Jason."

"I didn't think of that," Jason said. He eyed the Roman side of the map wearily.

"But how will they manage to get to Juno? It's not like the Olympians are vacationing to California."

Jason rolled his eyes at Mathan.

"They'll have to capture her in our territory," he said. "Chiron, send word out to the outposts in Kansas City, Chicago, and Dallas that the Romans will be attempting to breach our borders. They are to capture any Romans attempting to cross."

Chiron nodded and wheeled himself out of the room to find a son of Hermes to deliver the message. Jason walked over to the side of the room, found a plush chair to sit in, and collapsed onto it.

"You alright?" asked Mathan. Jason put his head in his hands and shook no.

"Why would they do this? Why would they betray the gods?"

"I don't know. I can't see Lupa allowing this."

Jason looked up so fast his neck popped. "That's it."

"What's it?"

"Lupa. She would never allow Rome to do this. That means either they've done something to mess with her mind, or they've locked her up so she's not in their way."

"Well what can we do about it? It's not like we can just waltz back into camp and get Lupa back," Mathan said. Jason smiled evilly.

"Maybe we can."

"How?"

"Do you remember our study on the Trojan War?"

[LINEBREAK]

Reyna watched with morbid amusement as the mortals screamed in pain. Their blood ran like a river through the middle of Rebellionis, the camp that once was known as Camp Jupiter. The Roman legionnaires stood by watching, joking with each other as to which of the mortals would die next. Beside Reyna stood Lupa; watching. Her mouth was set firmly, but her eyes betrayed her horror.

"What do you think, Lupa?" asked Reyna. "We will finally be able to rebuild Rome. A Rome on the backs of the weak."

"I think you're a fool," said Lupa. "How could you ever believe that this is the right thing to do?"

Reyna frowned. "Because it is their place. We are children of the gods. You are a goddess! The mortals should be on their knees begging for their lives!"

"That has never proven to work, Reyna, and you know this. Many great civilizations were built on the backs of slaves, and each one of them has fallen. The reason Rome has lasted so long, and Greece as well, is because the gods did not demand blood as payment. Only worship and praise. This Rome will fall like all the rest."

Reyna scowled and swung an open palm at Lupa. The wolf goddess fell to the ground, ichor dripping from her cracked lip. She snarled in anger but did not defend herself. Reyna smiled and knelt down, grabbing a handful of Lupa's hair.

"I've already broken you, wolf goddess," she said, her words were barely a whisper. "Rome has already fallen. This is a new era. The time of the Primordials has come and I will be the one to usher it in."

"Reyna," whispered Lupa.

"What?"

"Once you've looked into the abyss, the darkness will never leave you."

"Good," Reyna said. She smiled as she stood back up. "You'll see our side of things, Lupa. You'll see."

Reyna turned and began heading down from their platform to where the rest of the legionnaires were. Before she reached the stairs she turned her head back at Lupa.

"If you ever mutter such things again- if you even think treasonously- your life will be forfeit."

Lupa dropped her head to the wooden floor, her body wracked with bitter sobs. _Then forfeit it is_ , she thought to herself.

Reyna walked down the rest of the steps towards where a group of centurions sat at a round table. They were laughing as they watched a group of mortals march past.

"You dropped your bundle, old man!" mocked one soldier. The other three roared with laughter as the elderly man stooped down to pick up his small bundle of wood. The man's arms were too weak and he fell to the ground as he tried to pick the wood back up. The centurion stopped laughing and rose to his feet, placing his hand on the hilt of his whip.

"Pick them up," he said. The man looked up, his eyes red from tears or anger, Reyna wasn't sure.

"I ca-can't," he said. His voice shook. The centurion pulled out his whip.

"Pick them up or face your punishment."

"I can't!"

The centurion cracked his whip, the leather slapping painfully against the elderly man's back. The man screamed out in pain as blood trickled down his spine. "Pick them up!"

Reyna watched, a smile on her face, as the man was whipped three more times. After the last whip, the man collapsed to the ground, face into the dirt. The centurion growled in anger and cracked the whip once more, but the man did not react. Reyna sighed. _Such frailty_ , she thought to herself.

"He's dead, centurion," she said. The soldier looked up. "Dispose of him like the rest."

The centurion nodded and, coiling his whip around his waist once again, hoisted the lifeless body over his shoulder like a sack of flour. He smirked at his fellow soldiers as he took the body to the river where the bodies were taken. The other two centurions stood up and saluted their praetor.

"Report, Dakota," Reyna said. The centurion stepped forward.

"We've lost ten slaves today, Praetor. These mortals are useless," said the centurion.

"Only ten?"

"Yes, Praetor."

"Increase the workload," Reyna ordered. "That number should be much higher."

The centurions smirked to one another and nodded.

"Yes, Praetor. As you command," they said as they hurried off to implement the new order. Reyna watched them leave before heading towards the central building that once housed the senate. The building was stained red from the blood of the slaves. Upon entering the building, Reyna headed down towards the lower levels. Below the main floor, only a single torch lighted each room. The lower she went, the colder the air became.

" _Reyna, you've come_ ," came a raspy voice. Reyna dropped to her knees.

"Yes, mistress."

" _What have you to report, Praetor?_ "

"Rebellionis is coming along. The slaves are slowly rebuilding the city. After we purged the city of loyalists, the rest of the centurions have pledged their support. Many of them have fully joined our cause."

" _And Lupa?_ "

"The wolf bitch is still defiant, but she's shown no sign of fighting against us. I believe it's only a matter of days before we have her."

" _Good. Very good. And of our targets?_ "

"Our troops are marching towards Thanatos' location as we speak, and I'm still gathering a small force to capture Hera."

" _Only a small force, Praetor? How can a small force capture an Olympian?_ "

"Trust me, mother. We will have Hera in our grasp soon."

" _See that you do. Your life is on the line._ _You're dismissed._ "

Reyna bowed once more and left the central building. Octavian was outside waiting for her.

"What did the mother say?" he asked. After Gaia's takeover of Rome, Octavian had completely lost his mind. Gaia adored him. "What did she say?"

"That our lives are on the line. We must capture Hera." It wasn't a complete lie, but Octavian didn't need to know that Gaia was not putting him under the same threat.

"Then we must hurry! We must do as the earth mother says!" Octavian bounded off for his hut where Reyna could only assume he would bathe in a pool of soaked cotton stuffing. She never understood Octavian's need to sacrifice stuffed animals. But none of that mattered at the moment. She had an Olympian goddess to capture.

 **A/N: Hello everyone! Sorry this is so late. I planned on getting this out earlier, but I barely had any time to write. I know this chapter is not my longest by any means, but I hope you all still enjoyed it.**

 **As you can probably tell, this story will be much darker than Balancing Act. If that does not suit you just be warned now.**

 **Thanks to everyone who has favorited/followed/reviewed this story so far! I really appreciate all of the support! Now if you guys want me to update this story more frequently and with a bigger word count, please review! At the beginning of Balancing Act, I was able to update once or twice A DAY beacuse I was getting a ton of great reviews with what you guys wanted to see in the story. If you guys do that again with this story I promise I'll be able to get more done much faster!**

 **Thanks for reading!**

 **Update 4/17/16 - I know you are all waiting for me to continue the story, and I promise I won't disappoint. Currently I am nearing the end of this semester of school so lots of assignments are coming up. Chapter 2 will be up as soon as I possibly can. Sorry for the wait!**

 **Update 6/6/16 - Alright guys it's been a while since I've updated and I'm very sorry. I've had several ideas as to how I wanted to continue the story and sadly had to write and rewrite chapter 2 several times. I'm currently working on the actual chapter I'll post. I think you guys will really enjoy the direction I'm taking with Civil War. The chapter is currently 40% finished. I plan on having it done this week so stay tuned!**

 **Just to keep you guys hooked here's a little teaser:**

Jason blinked and stared at Mathan. "Are you stupid? I'm a son of Jupiter. Pluto would never even think about allowing me into the Underworld."

"We don't need Pluto's permission," Mathan smirked.

"What are you talking about?"

Mathan walked back over to the table in the center of the room. "Remember that son of Hades that the Greeks talk about? Nico something?"

Jason nodded slowly. "Nico Di'Angelo. He and his sister both died during the Titan War."

"Right, well I've heard rumors that Nico was actually the King of Ghosts. I'll bet that he's still around. If we can find a way to bring him back to us we can use his talents to our advantage."


	3. Chapter 2

"So let me get this straight," said Mathan. "Your plan is to simply hand over a giant horse thing to the Romans with us inside? That has to be the most cliché plan I've ever heard."

Jason rubbed his eyes. "Do you have any better ideas?"

"Yes I do." Mathan eyed the room. When they had realized they needed to get Lupa out of Rome, they had moved their operations to a small cabin in the wooded areas around the Ozarks in Missouri. It was near the border between Greece and Rome and far enough away from any of their encampments. While Hecate had prevented any spies from infiltrating, Jason had deemed it necessary to go about this plan alone. Only Chiron knew of their intentions, and even he did not know where they were. The cabin they were staying at was covered in wards and runes preventing anything other than a demigod from entering. Not even the Olympians could find them there. Mathan walked over to a window overlooking a lake. "There's one way we can use to get from here to San Francisco without anyone knowing."

"Oh yeah and what's that?"

"The Underworld."

Jason blinked and stared at Mathan. "Are you stupid? I'm a son of Jupiter. Pluto would never even think about allowing me into the Underworld."

"We don't need Pluto's permission," Mathan smirked.

"What are you talking about?"

Mathan walked back over to the table in the center of the room. "Remember that son of Hades that the Greeks talk about? Nico something?"

Jason nodded slowly. "Nico Di'Angelo. He and his sister both died during the Titan War."

"Right, well I've heard rumors that Nico was actually the King of Ghosts. I'll bet that he's still around. If we can find a way to bring him back to us we can use his talents to our advantage."

"That's not a bad idea," said Jason. "Only one problem: how are we going to get Nico back up here?"

Mathan wagged his finger at Jason, his smirk still in place. "That's the question isn't it?" He turned and walked over to the small bookshelf in the corner. "Now where is it… Ah! Here it is!" He pulled out a small, worn-out journal and walked back to Jason as he flipped through the pages. "Look right here."

Mathan handed the journal to Jason who glanced at the pages.

"This is in Greek," he cursed. "How am I supposed to read this? How did _you_ read this?!"

Mathan rolled his eyes and pointed to the edges of the pages. "I had one of the Athena campers translate this for me into English which I translated into Latin."

"You need to work on your handwriting," said Jason as he squinted. He flipped through the pages for a minute reading and mumbling to himself. Finally he put the book down onto the table. "The Argonauts? The Greek demigod dream team?"

Mathan nodded. "This journal is their exact documentation of their group. The man that actually compiled this journal was a Greek guy named Orpheus. Ring any bells?"

"Orpheus," Jason muttered, still attempting to make out Mathan's scribbled scrawl. "Orpheus… I'm not entirely sure where I know that name from."

"You ever hear of the story of the man who attempted to bring his wife back from the Underworld? She was to be right behind him as he walked out, but he couldn't hear her so he turned to look and she was floated behind him?"

"Oh! Yes! I do know that," Jason said. "So this Orpheus guy was part of the Argonauts and is one of the few people ever to have gone into the Underworld and return alive?"

"Exactly." Mathan reached out and took the journal back. "There's something very interesting about the ending of this journal."

"What's that?"

"Well according to Greek mythology, the Athena campers, and Chiron himself, Orpheus died at around 1232 B.C.E."

"So what?" asked Jason. "What's so fascinating about that?"

"The last entry of this journal is from 1864. Thousands of years after Orpheus' apparent death."

Jason's eyes bulged and he stared at the journal. Suddenly the stupid Greek journal was the best lead they had. "How is that even possible?"

"It's obvious isn't it?" Mathan smirked. "The Argonauts are still out there and they're the only ones that can get us through the Underworld. It's up to us to find them."

"And how do you suggest we do that? I doubt Orpheus simply left the instructions in the journal as to their location."

"Actually," Mathan said. "He left a clue within this journal."

Jason waved his hand for Mathan to elaborate. Mathan reached into his satchel on the chair and pulled out a much more worn journal.

"This is the original journal. Look at this page right here," he said pointing at one of the last pages in the journal. Jason glanced at it with a frown.

"It's just a bunch of text."

"Precisely." Mathan moved to the table to put the book down where they could both see it clearly. "However, the text is only one sided."

"What do you mean?" asked Jason. He tilted his head to try and see better.

"The ink that Orpheus used to write this page bled through so you can see it on the other side. To someone that is simply flipping through the pages it looks like it's just another random page, and those that are reading will simply assume it's a writing error."

"And… it's not a writing error?"

"Exactly. Why would Orpheus, a famed poet and writer, make such a huge mistake? Maybe there's something more about this page."

"What are you thinking?"

"There are certain letters on the page that are capitalized." Mathan put the original beside the translated version. "Look at this: I, G, I, N, S."

"Ignis? Fire?"

"I'm not sure." Mathan seemed to take a deep breath, and then ripped the original page right out of the journal.

"What the hell are you doing?" screamed Jason. Mathan gave him a quick look to quiet him.

"I'm holding it up to the light. Heat from the fire might show us something." Mathan held up the page to one of the torches, careful not to put it too close. Nothing. "Dammit, I really thought there'd be something!"

Jason frowned and walked over to one of the cabinets in the room. Hundreds of vials full of different potions, herbs, and ingredients were stocked there. He searched for a moment before he found what he was looking for. He walked back to Mathan and handed him a vial with an orange liquid in it. "Try this on the page."

Mathan took the vial warily. "What is it?"

"It's liquid fire from the gland of a dragon."

Mathan smiled with glee. The look frightened Jason before he remembered that he was dealing with a son of Vulcan. If anybody could work with fire it'd be Mathan.

"This will work great," said Mathan. "We just need to take this outside."

Jason nodded and followed Mathan out of the cabin.

"Clear a space."

Jason bristled slightly at being given orders, but did as he was told. He grabbed the dead grass and branches from the ground and flung them away. Mathan nodded with approval and placed the page on the ground.

"Here it goes," Mathan said. He uncorked the vial and poured the liquid fire onto the page as slowly as he could. The page began to melt into the ground to Jason's horror, but Mathan continued to pour. Jason began to feel his knees grow weak from the failure, when Mathan jumped with a triumphant yell.

"What?!" yelled Jason.

"Look!"

Jason looked at the ground and nearly collapsed. On the ground burned the image of a sword inscribed with three letters: F, C, B.

"What does _that_ mean?" asked Jason. It felt like they were simply going in circles. When Mathan didn't respond, Jason looked up to see Mathan hurriedly sketching the image onto a piece of parchment.

After a minute Mathan put the paper away and smothered the fire out with his foot. "I'm not sure but I think I know someone that might be of some help."

"Who?"

"The Oracle."

[LINEBREAK]

Percy stared at the massive doors in front of him. They were dark as the night sky, the very universe contained within them. They were, in a word, breathtaking. In all of his travels, Percy had never witnessed such a sight. In fact, everything in this place was fantastical. The floor was made of the most beautiful, perfectly chiseled white stone. The walls draped in art and rugs from more places than Percy even knew existed.

"Incredible. Isn't it?"

Percy didn't look away. "Incredible doesn't begin to describe it."

"They call these doors the Gate of Worlds. The Norse created their own version of this place, as have countless other groups of people."

"Is it truly a gate? Or simply for looks?"

"Try it for yourself."

Percy shook his head, turning from the doors. "I don't have time for exploration. I must return to my own realm, Erebus."

Erebus sighed, turning his bearded head towards the gates.

"I feared as much. You gods believe that a world as miniscule as yours is worth saving. You've seen enough of the universe, Gabriel. You know there's much more out there."

"I go by the name Percy now actually. And yes, I've seen more of the universe than almost anyone else, but Earth is my home. I cannot abandon it," Percy said. Erebus nodded, a smile on his face.

"I will never understand your love for that world, but I admire you nevertheless." Erebus placed his hand on the gates, a massive explosion of light appearing beneath his hand. "I'm afraid, however, that sending you back is not so simple."

Percy frowned, watching Erebus's hand. "What do you mean? What will it take to get me back?"

Erebus turned back towards him. He snapped his fingers and Percy found himself sitting in a small library, a fire blazing beside him. Percy looked around the room frantically, finding Erebus standing next to a bookshelf, eyeing the books.

"Do you remember the prophecy? The last great prophecy that your Oracle predicted?"

" _A half-blood of the eldest god,_

 _Shall reach sixteen in total awe,_

 _And see the world in endless sleep,_

 _The hero's soul, blessed blade shall reap,_

 _A single choice shall end his days,_

 _Olympus to preserve or raze._

Of course I remember the prophecy."

Erebus nodded to himself. "And tell me. What did each line mean?" Percy shifted himself in his seat.

"A half-blood of the eldest god referred to me. Not as Gabriel but as Percy. The world in endless sleep referred to Morpheus putting Manhattan to sleep so that the people would not witness the final battle. The hero's soul, blessed blade shall reap, refers to my sword Isorropia. A single choice was the choice to kill myself, and Kronos with me, or allow him to live. My choice would have either saved or destroyed Olympus."

"And what of the second line? 'Shall reach sixteen in total awe?'" asked Erebus.

"I couldn't figure that one out. I had my suspicions but I couldn't get a definitive answer. I died before I could figure it out."

"What were your suspicions, Percy?"

Percy shrugged.

"The best one I could think of was that I would become a full immortal, but the only way to have proved that would have been to die," he explained. "Another was that I would obtain all of my godly powers once more. But I wasn't able to use some of my major gifts."

Erebus walked over to the fire and sat across from Percy. He clasped his hands together and crossed his right leg over his left. Percy felt a tingle of fear down his spine as he watched Erebus. Despite the light reflecting around the room, Percy saw nothing in the oldest creation of the universe.

"You were correct, my friend, with your first hypothesis. When you turned sixteen you became fully immortal. Should you have perished in battle, you would have returned once more to your world in a few years."

Percy rubbed his eyes.

"I sense a 'but' coming."

" _But_ ," Erebus started again. He narrowed his eyes at Percy for interrupting. "Two things complicated everything. Your blade, the one from the prophecy, and your lover."

Percy coughed, ichor rushing to his cheeks. "My-my lover?"

Erebus didn't blink.

"Yes. Your lover. Artemis, the goddess of the hunt." He noticed Percy's blush and smirked. "I forget that you gods feel more than just the rudimentary emotions."

"Yes, well… we feel them," said Percy. "But how did my lov- Artemis. How did Artemis complicate things? Isorropia I understand, but Artemis…"

"After you died your spirit was on its way to the void due to the blessings upon your blade. However, when Artemis and the other Olympians arrived, Artemis directed your soul to the sky; specifically, Uranus' realm."

"So how did that complicate things? And how am I here and not in the sky?" asked Percy. Erebus sighed.

"Because Artemis unintentionally split your soul."

Percy blinked. The fire seemed to fade to ashes, a cold wind sent shivers down his spine making the hairs on his neck rise on end. Erebus was saying something to him, but Percy didn't hear him. 'Split my soul? How is that even possible?' he asked himself. He had never heard of a god's soul being split. It did make sense though. His sword had managed to tear his soul out of his body, sending it to the void. Artemis must have attempted to direct it elsewhere whether that was her intention or not. Percy assumed it wasn't. How was she to know he was going to spend the rest of his days in the void? Percy suddenly felt his age. He closed his eyes and reached out with his mind into the void. As the god of balance, the fates had given Percy limited foresight into the fate of the world. He could see different realities and multiple outcomes, but when he had transferred himself into a demigod's body he had lost that gift.

"How do I return my soul to normal?" Percy asked. He felt a sharp pain in his hand and looked down. His fist was clutching the armrest with tremendous force. Releasing it caused his muscles to scream in pain. Erebus handed Percy a book he must have gotten when Percy wasn't watching. "What is this? I don't need a damn book. If my soul is in fragments I need a plan. I need to know what I need to do."

Before Percy could react, Erebus' open palm slapped him across the face.

"What the hel-" Erebus' second slap interrupted him. "Stop that!"

"Shut up you insolent twit!" roared Erebus. 'Shit', thought Percy. 'I've just angered the void. I've just angered the fucking void'.

"That book was written by my son Ether and by Love. It explains everything about the heavenly realms. Including the entrapment and locations of souls," explained Erebus. He slowly sank back into his chair, returning to his relaxed position. Percy rubbed the spot on his cheek where he could still feel the sting from the slaps. "Having your soul be split does not mean the end for you. However, you will have to bring all of the pieces together if you wish to ever return to the mortal plane."

Percy couldn't help but retort sarcastically. "I'm assuming it won't be as simple as asking Uranus for my soul fragment." Either Erebus didn't understand the sarcasm or he simply brushed it aside. Percy figured it was the first option.

"No. It won't be easy at all. Only two others in the existence of the world since the days of Chaos have managed to do so."

"Well shit."

"Do not confuse difficulty with impossibility, Percy," Erebus said. Percy wanted to smack him. Wise comments and inspiring words were only serving to irritate him.

"I'm not. If I did that I would have faded long ago. I simply am trying to wrap my mind around all of this."

"Take your time. The process of soul mending is not an easy thing. Even for an Olympian."

Percy nodded and looked down at the book. "Heaven and the Void," read the title. Obviously Ether and Love did not learn anything from Apollo on good book titles. 'Damn', he thought. 'There's not even a picture on the cover'. He flipped through the pages, angling the pages (book) towards the fire.

"What language is this? I've never seen anything like this?" Percy asked.

"That is the language of time, the first language. Chaos itself created it. I am not surprised you have not seen it before."

"The first language, huh? Is there some sort of Rosetta stone for me to use to decipher this?"

Erebus snapped his fingers and the letters morphed into Ancient Greek. Percy nodded with appreciation and began to read in earnest. Most of it was useless information. That didn't mean, however, that Percy wasn't storing it away. It could prove to be priceless in the future, and he somehow did not think that Barnes and Noble would carry it in stock. Chapter after chapter was filled with irrelevant material. Where the mind stones were located, where the Gates of the Worlds opened, where the other pantheon gods were exiled to. Percy actually paused at the last chapter. The other gods were out there? Interesting. He made a mental picture of the information and continued on. Chapter 34 of the book finally contained what he needed.

"This here states that to merge my soul together I require the blood of each of the Gate Keepers. What the hell are the 'Gate Keepers'?"

"The Gate Keepers were eight Primordials that Chaos put in place to protect this world. As you can imagine there are eight Gates of Worlds, each one guarded by a Keeper."

"Sounds like a cheesy fantasy novel to me," muttered Percy. In all honesty it _did_ sound corny, as if Chaos was getting a laugh at making up random shit. 'Let me put a Gate Keeper here…and…oh! How about eight secret guards to protect the realm!' Percy snorted at that last thought.

"Laugh all you want," scolded Erebus. "But it is all true."

"Alright, alright." Percy looked back through the book. "It doesn't mention who the Gate Keepers are."

"Of course not. That is a closely guarded secret, Percy."

"You're one of them aren't you?"

There would have been a glimmer in Erebus' eyes, if he weren't the void with empty black pits for eyes.

"What makes you think that?" Erebus asked. Percy snorted.

"Shut up and answer the question."

"Yes. I am one of the eight."

Percy narrowed his eyes. Why couldn't he just elaborate on his answer?

"And who else?"

"That is not something you need to know," answered Erebus cryptically. Percy glanced down at the book and then back up.

"According to the book _your_ son wrote, I need to consume a potion with the ichor of each of the eight Keepers. So I believe that is something I do, in fact, need to know, so out with it old man." Percy immediately regretted his tone. Erebus' eyes seemed to burn with black fire.

"Do not push me, Olympian. You are nothing to me. It matters not to me if you manage to piece together your soul." The rage in the void's face sent Percy sprawling out of his seat. He collapsed to his knees before the Primordial.

"Forgive me, Erebus. I-I did not mean to push. I simply am eager beyond words to return to my home, my family."

Erebus nodded and leaned back in his chair. "I understand. But do not underestimate me, Percy."

"Never, milord."

"Good. Now as for the identities of the other seven, I may be willing to provide the names if you do something for me," Erebus said. Percy stood back up.

"Anything."

"You must go through the Gate of Worlds and bring me back a shard from the tree Yggdrasil."

 **A/N: I'm back! This chapter took WAY too long to come up with. I know many of you are probably really confused by the direction this story is taking but please trust me. I have a plan and I think you guys will love it. Now to answer two questions I think you guys might be having: 1) Yes, Percy's personality is slightly different, but that's because he is back to his normal and original state as Gabriel. He has all of his powers, but he also has some of Demigod Percy's personality. Both will make him a more well-rounded character I hope. 2) No, this will not be a Greek/Roman/Norse story. The only inclusion the Norse mythology will have in Civil War will be Yggdrasil the tree and it'll be quick and to the point. Everything else will be Greek/Roman mythology. Hopefully you guys will find this story to be unique and enjoyable.**

 **As always, thank you so much to everyone that has favorited, followed, and reviewed this story. You guys are the best! Remember to leave reviews and please, please, please let me know what you guys think and what you guys want to see happen in this story. Both really help motivate me to write more.**

 **Thanks everyone! Till next time! (Which will hopefully be much sooner than Chapter 2 was)**


	4. Chapter 3

Jason stared at the door leading to the attic of the Big House back at Camp Half-Blood. Facing Titans seemed easier than speaking to the Oracle. Titans were predictable. With the Oracle he never knew what would happen. He looked over his shoulder to where Mathan stood guard.

"Make sure no one comes this way."

Mathan nodded and headed to the end of the hallway to stop anyone from coming up. Jason took a deep breath and headed up the steps to where the Oracle lay. The wooden steps creaked and groaned under his weight. The attic was completely dark and Jason had to run his hand along the side of the walls to keep himself steady. It did not take long before he ran his head into the door at the top of the steps. Rubbing his forehead Jason pushed the door open gently, wincing as it squeaked on its hinges. A dim light shown through a single window on the far wall of the attic illuminating the sarcophagus in the very center. Jason took a deep breath and approached the Oracle.

"Oh great and knowledgeable Oracle, tell me how to find the Argonauts," he said. He braced himself for a mummified corpse to leap out of sarcophagus. His hand reached into his coat and gripped his golden denarius, but nothing happened. Jason frowned and leaned forward to push open the top of the coffin to see the Oracle. The moment his hand touched the sarcophagus, a brilliant green light burst into the room throwing the son of Jupiter to the ground. Jason's instincts kicked in and he rolled to the side coin in hand. The Oracle emerged from its confinement. Green smoke flowed from its mouth and eyes. Jason tried to suppress his shudder but did so nonetheless.

" _Three heroes in black,_

 _Shall aid a soul on its journey back._

 _They'll flee, betrayed and broken,_

 _To a land that time has forgotten,_

 _And beneath man's final breath,_

 _Find their salvation or their death."_

Jason felt his legs go numb as he fell against the wall of the attic. The Oracle turned its head towards him before exploding in a shower of green light. Jason brought his hands up to his face to protect his eyes, but the light died as soon as it came. He leaped to his feet as fast as he could, but all that remained of the Oracle were two strips of linen cloth.

"What the Hades just happened?" Jason muttered. Mathan burst into the room flashlight and razor in hand.

"Jason?" he yelled. Jason coughed behind him. Mathan whirled around ready to fight when he saw it was Jason. "What happened in here? I heard a loud noise."

"I'm not sure," Jason said. He bent down and picked up the linen from the floor. "The Oracle spoke to me and then exploded."

Mathan frowned and looked at the cloth then back at the room. "That can't be a good sign. What was the prophecy it gave you?"

Jason heard noise from below them. He shook his head.

"Not here. Let's head to my cabin. I'll tell you there."

[LINEBREAK]

Rachel Elizabeth Dare stared at the canvas in front of her and frowned. She had been hoping to paint the landscape in front of her. She had always found the Grand Canyon fascinating to paint. She wasn't exactly sure why. She had seen far more impressive sights, but she always seemed to be drawn here. She narrowed her eyes at what she had painted and tilted her head. Instead of the oranges and reds and browns she thought she needed to paint the canyon, she had painted with green and black. If she looked hard enough, she could just make out three cloaked figures huddled around a green fire. At least that's what she thought she saw. She sighed and got ready to toss the painting to the side when the world around her went black.

" _My child, I have chosen you to lead the new world,"_ came a raspy voice. Rachel spun around hoping to see where the voice had come from, but saw nothing.

"Who's there?" she asked. She hoped her voice sounded confident.

" _I am the Oracle, the prophesier. My time has come and gone. It is your turn now."_

Rachel frowned. "What the hell is this? Is this some kind of terrible prank? What is the Oracle?"

Instead of answering her questions, she felt an overwhelming sensation of peace wash over her. In an instant every question she had about what was going on was answered. She understood. Despite what had happened to her in San Francisco with Percy and the girls with him, she didn't fully believe that she was seeing the Greek myths come to life. Not until now.

"I must become the Oracle?" Rachel asked.

" _It is your choice. But you have been chosen."_

Rachel took a deep breath before nodding. "I will accept. I will become the Oracle of Delphi."

Suddenly the dark abyss around her erupted in an emerald light, and Rachel felt overwhelming knowledge pierce her mind.

" _Welcome Oracle of Delphi_."

[LINEBREAK]

Thalia growled to herself, clutching her silver jacket to her chest. It seemed to her to be the only way she could stay warm. For days the hunters and Artemis had been traveling north to Alaska. Artemis claimed it was the only place that was beyond the power of the gods. Thalia wasn't sure she was too pleased about that. They hadn't even reached Alaska and Thalia already felt cold and alone. Having her sisters by her side did not do much for her in the cold. Ahead of her Artemis trudged along determinedly, her pace never quickening and never slowing.

"She's going to kill us," muttered Zoe beside her. "She's actually going to kill us."

"We have to stop at some point…don't we?" Thalia couldn't stop her teeth from chattering despite having a thick wool scarf draped over her face. "Can we even die from cold?"

"I think so," Zoe said. "I've never actually seen any hunter die from cold before."

"Let's go girls!" yelled Artemis ahead of them. "We have to reach Alaska by nightfall!"

Zoe and Thalia stopped and looked off to the horizon. The sun was just about to set in the distance. They cursed and glanced at each other.

"I'll bet you ten drachma that we won't reach Alaska," said Thalia. Zoe smirked, though it was hidden by her scarf.

"Deal."

And so they continued. The blistering, cold winds whipped them painfully. Every step they took seemed to cause more aching in their bones. Twice Thalia and Zoe had to stop to help a sister that had collapsed from exhaustion. Artemis simply continued on, not waiting for the girls to catch up. Thalia had to continuously zap herself with electricity just to keep warm. She thought about zapping her sisters but knew they wouldn't take it very well.

"Alright girls, we'll make camp here," said Artemis. The girls cheered halfheartedly, whether it was due to exhaustion or the cold Thalia wasn't sure. Most likely both. Artemis smiled at them, taking pity. With a snap of her fingers, the tents were made and a three fires erupted. The girls rushed to the fires and sighed with relief.

"I'm guessing we're not in Alaska?" asked Thalia. Artemis shook her head and Thalia cheered. She stuck her hand out to Zoe. "Pay up."

Before Zoe could hand Thalia the coins, Artemis spoke again. "But Alaska is only a few feet away. We are making camp here for the night before I lose my powers when we enter the state."

Zoe smirked and held her own hand out. Thalia swore under her breath and slapped ten gold coins into Zoe's hand.

"Where is the food we brought?" asked Artemis. She took a seat beside the fire. Atalanta reached back to her pack and dropped it next to Artemis.

"This is what we have left," she said. Artemis nodded gratefully and began setting the salted meat on the fire to cook. In minutes, with a little godly aid, Artemis handed out the rations to the hunters. Quietly they all ate.

"We should get some rest. Tomorrow we'll find a better place to hole up and wait for the Romans. If they're going to capture a god, they'll bring them here." Artemis looked at each hunter. "Dana, you keep watch first."

Dana nodded and everyone else crawled into their tents to get some rest. Inside the lieutenant's tent, Thalia and Zoe began unrolling their mats.

"Do you think Artemis is ok?" asked Thalia. Zoe shrugged.

"She seems to be handling things fine. She _is_ Artemis after all."

"But what about Percy?"

Zoe sighed. "I don't know to be honest. We all took it hard; she just took it harder."

Thalia lay down on her mat, wrapping herself tightly in the wool blankets Artemis provided. She looked up through the skylight each tent had. The constellation Isorropia twinkled brilliantly overhead. "I miss him."

Zoe looked up and nodded.

"He'll find a way back. He did it before, he'll do it again."

"You don't think he's dead?"

"I think that we still have to figure out the full meaning of the Great Prophecy. I have high hopes that Percy will make it back."

Outside their tent Artemis stood, listening to their whispers. She followed their lead and looked up at the constellation she had made painfully recently. A single starlit tear caressed her cheek. She wiped it away angrily and glared up at the stars. 'When you get back, Percy,' she thought, 'I'll make you pay for what you did'. The pain the hunters and Artemis were in would be nothing compared to the pain they'd inflict on Percy when he returned.

[LINEBREAK]

"Tell me it again."

"Again?" asked Jason. "I've already told you twice."

"Yes, but this time I need to write it down."

"Fine. _Three heroes in black,_

 _Shall aid a soul on its journey back._

 _They'll flee, betrayed and broken,_

 _To a land that time has forgotten._

 _And beneath man's final breath,_

 _Find their salvation or their death."_

Mathan whistled.

"No matter how many times I hear that I still get chills." He glanced down at it. "What do you think it means?"

"It wouldn't really be a prophecy if I knew what it meant," Jason said sarcastically. He rubbed his eyes tiredly and sat on his bunk. "Sorry man. I'm just so tired. I want direct answers for a fucking change."

Mathan nodded. "No problem, boss. I get it. Let's just figure out what we can, alright?"

"Alright," said Jason. He got up and walked over to the table. "The three heroes in black. I know we are two, but who's the third?"

"Clarisse maybe? She was with us at the end of the Titan War."

"Maybe…" Jason trailed off. "Actually that does make sense. But what does the 'in black' part mean?"

Mathan scratched his chin, realizing he hadn't shaved in a while. "Well black is typically worn in mourning. It could just mean we are still in mourning over Percy's death."

"I don't think so," Jason said. "That was a few months ago. This prophecy makes it seem like the mourning will be at that moment. Something terrible is going to happen."

"That could be anything though."

"Exactly. Let's keep going, we can go back to that. 'Shall aid a soul on its journey back.' Could that be Percy?"

"You could be right," said Mathan. "He did manage to return from presumable death before. Maybe he can do it again. We'll just need to figure out how to get him back…if that's the case."

Jason nodded. "Alright so next line: 'They'll flee, betrayed and broken.' Shouldn't Hecate's tattoo protect us from betrayal?"

"It protects us from spies." Mathan frowned, thinking it over. "If one of our troops decides to defect, the deal Lady Styx made will cause the tattoo to disappear. A complete change from fighting with us to going to the Romans is different than pretending to be Greek."

"Shit," Jason cursed. "We'll need to enforce a mandatory tattoo check. I'll tell Chiron immediately once we're finished."

"Good. 'To a land that time has forgotten.' Ancient Greece? Rome? The gods have moved away from there," Mathan said. Jason nodded.

"I think you're right. The old homes of the gods are falling to ruin. They've essentially been abandoned and forgotten by the gods. Seems like that's the only easy line here." Jason eyed the last two lines. "I think we'll have to wait on the last two. It seems we'll figure those out when we arrive in Greece or Rome."

"So we've figured out all we can?" Mathan asked. Jason nodded.

"I think so."

"Okay then. Let's get word out to Chiron to start that check-up then let's find Clarisse. The sooner we find the Argonauts, the sooner we can get to Lupa."

The two turned to leave, opening the door to the Zeus cabin. Chiron stood in the doorway, hand stretched out about to grab the door handle. Jason frowned. Chiron looked disheveled, his hair was a mess and his eyes were bloodshot.

"Chiron what's wrong?" asked Jason. Chiron shook his head.

"I've just gotten word from Clarisse. Missouri has fallen. The Romans have launched a full scale attack."

 **A/N: Hello everyone! It's been WAY too long. I'm extremely sorry for the lack of updates. I won't give any excuses, but to answer your questions: NO I am not abandoning this story, and NO I have not lost interest. I promise!**

 **This chapter is pretty short, but I'm finishing it up in the airport and I wanted to get it out as quick as I could. I hope you enjoyed it.**

 **Thank you everyone who has favorited, followed, and reviewed this story. You guys are the best. The next update will not take a month I promise. Expect it next week, OR if I get let's say... at least ten reviews by Thursday I'll put it out Friday. I know it's a lot but let's make it happen. Thanks for reading!**

 **Update 7/30/16: I know I said the chapter would come out this week (since I only got 3/10 reviews), but I've just found someone to beta read for me and we're just trying to get a rhythm down. Currently the next chapter is being edited so expect it soon!**


	5. Chapter 4

_10 Hours Before_

Clarisse crouched behind the thick bushes that covered the hills near their encampment. For days they'd been receiving word from their scouts that there was movement in Kansas. Worried that it spelled trouble, Clarisse organized a scouting party, herself included, to see what was going on. The evergreen forests surrounding the camp kept them hidden. A few flakes of snow began falling around them, and a frigid, fall wind rustling through the trees was the only sound around them. The birds had long left the area, though if it were due to the sounds coming from the camp below them or from the coming winter Clarisse was unsure. She looked around at the trees surrounding the six of them and frowned.

"Katie," said Clarisse. "Make this brush thicker. We don't want to be spotted before we see anything."

Katie Gardner, daughter of Demeter, nodded and with a wave of her hand and intense concentration, the green plants around them thickened. Clarisse nodded her thanks and pushed aside a few of the evergreen leaves to be able to see down into the valley ahead of them.

"Charlie, did you bring the binoculars?"

"Yeah, here ya go," said the burly son of Hephaestus. He handed the binoculars to Clarisse and pulled out a few more to hand to everyone else. "We should be in the best position possible."

"If only we could find a higher spot," Malcolm said. "But this is what we've got so we have to make the most of it."

"Everyone be quiet," hissed Clarisse. "There's something going on down there."

The other demigods rushed to the bushes and peered through. Below them was a rather large plantation that seemed to be as old as the first Civil War. Clarisse snarled as she saw mortals being lined up and inspected, their teeth inspected like a horses and all woefully underdressed for the chilly weather. It reminded her of the photos she'd seen of Nazi concentration camps. As she eyed the mortals she noticed something strange. An older, scruffy-looking man stood on the end next to two children. The girl was incredibly beautiful with dark, tan skin and caramel colored hair. Next to her stood a Latino boy with dark, brown hair. Clarisse was reminded of one of Santa's elves, and nearly snickered before she remembered what she was watching.

"There's something off with that one," said Michael Yew. He pointed in the direction of the old man that Clarisse had seen. "It's almost as if the mist is completely covering him."

Clarisse frowned and turned to Malcolm. "Alright Brainhead, any plans?"

"There _is_ something we could do," he said slowly. He moved back and cleared away some dirt, picked up a stick, and then began laying out their position. Clarisse and the other demigods sat around the drawing except for Michael who stayed by the bushes to keep an eye out.

"This is us," continued Malcolm. "The plantation is around a hundred yards over here with two main fields. By field A is the storage shelter. I'm assuming this is where they are storing the food and arms they need to supply the guards. By field B is the stable. From what I could see they have around fifteen horses. That's more than enough for us to use to get out in case things go wrong."

Clarisse eyed the map. "So the plans will be in the main house. Right?"

"Right," nodded Malcolm. "They could be either in the top floor or in the basement. We'll have to see when we get inside."

"So what's the plan? How are we going to get inside?" asked Travis Stoll.

"We have two options," Malcolm said. "The first is we send one person in through the back of the house. Field B is the least guarded so whoever we send will have to sneak through that way. They'll need to make it to the stable to cause a distraction. A small fire in the stable should be enough to get the horses freaked. The horses will then flee the stable making the guards have to track them down. That gives the rest of us time to sneak into the main house. There will undoubtedly be guards in the house, but we should be able to take care of them all."

"I like that plan," said Travis with a smirk. "I'll be the one to sneak into the stable."

Clarisse held up her hand, "Wait just a second. What's the second option, Brainhead?"

Malcolm frowned but pointed his stick back at the map and marked two lines in front of Field B. "The second option is much more… aggressive. Like the first one, we'll make our way through Field B. However, it'll be the reverse of the first plan. Instead of sending one and the rest waiting, we'll send everyone except for one person."

"Won't that make sneaking in much harder?" asked Katie. Malcolm nodded.

"That's the point. We'll dispatch the guards in field B quickly before they can react, and then make it to the stable. There we'll each take a horse and lead a charge into the next field. We should be able to hold the element of surprise long enough to overpower the guards in that field. Once we do that, we can use the mortals that they've imprisoned and storm the main house."

"I like this plan," grinned Clarisse. "But won't the guards in the main house be able to call out for reinforcements?"

"They most likely will, so we'll have to make sure that the person that stays behind is Michael. He can use his bow to pick off any couriers that try to emerge, and we can't just send our only healer into battle head on."

"What about Iris messages?" asked Charles.

Malcolm shook his head. "Shouldn't be a problem. Knowing the age of that plantation, the only way they can get water is from the well that's just out back behind the house. Michael will need to position himself so that he can see the well."

Clarisse looked at the others to gauge their emotions. They all seemed to like the second option. Everyone except for Travis, but that was only because he preferred sneaking around to open conflict.

"So what'll it be?" asked Malcolm. "Option 1 or option 2?"

"Katie, if we go with option 2 can you use the plants in the fields to our advantage?" asked Clarisse. Katie nodded and gave a thumbs up. "Charlie, do you have any sort of tools we can use to our advantage?"

"Yes I do. Ever since we found out the Romans are using mortals as slaves, I've developed a new bomb that shoots out celestial bronze. Deadly to demigods and monsters, harmless to mortals."

"Travis can you successfully flank them while we attack the main front?"

Travis nodded, liking the plan more. Clarisse grinned and looked at Malcolm.

"Option 2."

Malcolm smirked. "Alright then. Let's get our things together, make sure we have our places set, and then let's get those plans."

 _8 Hours Before_

Clarisse strapped on her utility belt with two of Charlie's celestial bronze bombs, and sheathed her spear on her back. She looked at the others. It was an insane plan. Things would have to go exactly according to plan, or things would get nasty. Fast. Six demigods were about to take on an entire plantation of Roman guards. Clarisse grinned. This is what she was born to do.

"Everybody ready?" she asked. Everybody nodded, weapons and armor in place. "Let's do this."

Michael bounded away around the hills to get to his marked location while the rest began a slow descent towards field B. They had been forced to move from their previous location to a spot closer to field B so that they wouldn't have to worry about being spotted on the way down. It was the middle of the afternoon and the sun was directly behind them. It was the perfect time. None of the guards would look in their direction so as to not look directly into the sun, and if they did, the bright light would overshadow the hillside.

The trek down the hill went off without a hitch. There were only four guards walking through the field, but they only seemed to be casually walking around. Clarisse waved her hand at Travis and signaled for him to take care of them before holding up a fist and stopping everyone else. She watched with anxious determination as Travis crept up towards the first guard. The Roman was young, only around fifteen years old. The tattoo on his arm shows the sign of some minor god that Clarisse was unfamiliar with, but the single bar meant the guard was relatively new to the Legion. With a flick of Travis' wrist, the young guard went to the ground without a whimper. Clarisse waved her hand and they moved forward quickly.

Charles pulled out a brown colored tarp, and covered the body with it. If anyone happened to walk by, the enchantments on the tarp would convince them they were only seeing a mound of earth. Clarisse nodded in approval and the party moved forward towards the stable. That was when things got a little more complicated. The second guard stood at the end of the field, but the last two were only a few yards away guarding the doors to the stable. There was no way they could take care of the second guard without alerting the other two.

"Malcolm," hissed Clarisse under her breath. "What do we do?"

"We'll have to rush them. We have the element of surprise. If we can get to them fast we have a chance of making it to the stable without raising any alarms," he said. Clarisse nodded and took a deep breath. She held up three fingers, and with each breath dropped a finger. When the last finger fell, the five demigods stormed out of the field. Travis pounced on the closest guard, slamming his helm into the ground. Clarisse and the others rushed the last two guards. Katie waved her hand and vines sprang out of the ground and wrapped around their ankles stopping them in their tracks. The others made short work of the Roman guards.

"Well done, Malcolm," said Charlie slapping the son of Athena on the back. Malcolm flinched under Charlie's large hand, but nodded.

"Thanks, but the jobs not over yet. We each need to find a horse now."

They all rushed into the stable, and began scrutinizing each of the horses the Romans had. After ten minutes of looking, each had found one they believed would work.

"Don't we need armor for the horses?" asked Katie. She frowned at the thought of the beautiful animal beneath her being harmed in the battle. Clarisse looked around the stable before finding a wall covered in armaments.

"There they are. Get something light. We can't have the horses be worn down in the charge. Speed is a necessity," said Clarisse. Everyone nodded and hurried over to the wall. Once each horse had been fitted in proper armor, they lined up at the entrance to the stable. "Alright guys, this is it. We are either rushing to our deaths or we will be changing the tide of this war."

"Oh, just how we like it," murmured Charlie. Katie stifled a snort. Clarisse shot him a quick glare for the sarcasm and pulled her spear off her back.

"For Greece!"

"For Greece!" roared the rest. And so they rode.

 _6 Hours Before_

"In line you fools!" shouted one of the Roman guards. Spittle shot from his mouth and hit Leo on the cheek. He tried to wipe it off, but the restraints on his wrists kept his arms behind his back. Leo simply glared at the guard behind his back, and rubbed his cheek on his shoulder.

"How are we going to get out of this?" he whispered under his breath.

"We'll think of something," whispered Piper next to him. "These people are crazy. I'm sure the FBI is looking for us right now."

"Why the FBI?"

"Cause I'm pretty sure we're not in Nevada anymore."

"Quiet!" hissed Coach Hedge beside Piper. "You'll get us killed."

Leo wasn't sure why, but he was not nervous at all. Sure, they had been kidnapped by some messed up cult that wore Roman armor, and then brought to some messed up prison, but he didn't feel worried at all. 'I must be sick or something,' he thought.

"You'll all be working these fields. From eight in the morning to nine at night, you'll be working out here," barked out the guard. He turned and glared directly at Leo. Leo wondered why the guard seemed to hate him so much. He looked closely and saw a tattoo on the guy's arm. 'This is one intense cult,' he thought. The tattoo had a hammer above four bars. Weird.

The guard continued his rant, "If you step out of line, you'll be killed. If you take a break, you'll be killed." He looked at Leo. "If you do anything weird, you'll be killed."

Leo glared at him.

"Tonight, you'll be sent to your cabins where you'll spend the rest of your miserable lives," the guard said. He nodded at another guard who grabbed the end of the chain that connected all the prisoners together, and began hauling them out of the field. Suddenly the first guard reared back, hand on his sword. "Wait! Stop! What's that?" He pointed behind their backs.

Leo, Piper, and Coach Hedge turned and could make out five figures charging towards them on horseback. Leo and Piper looked at each other.

"This place is fucked up," whispered Leo. Piper glared at him.

"Watch your language," she hissed. She turned and watched as the newcomers got closer and closer. The Roman guards began shouting and shoved the prisoners aside. They unsheathed their swords and began to line up. Leo shook his head.

"Maybe we got stuck in some sort of reenactment?" asked Leo. Coach Hedge shook his head.

"Something much better," he said. To Leo it sounded almost as if Coach was excited about what was about to happen. The lead rider held a spear directly in front of her and crashed right into the Roman's front line. The spear pierced the guard that had glared at Leo in the stomach. Blood spurted out and hit Leo on the cheek. He screamed and fell backward causing the entire line of prisoners to fall over.

"Blood! They actually are killing each other!" he screamed. Piper paled visibly and tried to scramble back away from the fight. Leo turned to Coach to see what they should do when he saw something that made him even more scared and confused: instead of his normal legs, Coach had two goats legs. He gaped and looked at Coach's face when he noticed two large horns sticking out from either side of his head. "C-Coach?"

Coach Hedge turned to him with a scowl, "don't be such a pansy, Leo. You'll find everything out soon."

Leo, for the first time in his life, was speechless. A scream from the fight caught his attention, and he turned to see a Roman guard being trampled by a massive warhorse. The newcomers were not dressed in Roman armor, but in armor nonetheless. A rather muscular looking rider turned towards them and his eyes widened when he saw Coach. 'Great,' thought Leo, 'they're going to kill Coach and then kill us because of his weird donkey feet.' Now he was starting to worry. The rider rode over to them, and jumped off the horse.

"Hedge? Is that you?" asked the rider. Coach smirked and nodded.

"What do you think, Charlie? Of course it's me! Now get off your lazy ass and get us out of here!" snarled Coach. The rider shook his head, but Leo thought he caught a smirk on the guy's face.

"Get these two too," said Coach pointing at Leo and Piper. The rider eyed them for a moment.

"Half-bloods?" he asked. Piper scowled and Leo felt anger swelling up inside. How dare he call her a half-blood? Then he paused and thought to himself. Why did he call _me_ a half-blood?

"Yes, powerful ones too," said Coach. Leo's anger seemed to change into confusion and hurt. He looked at Piper and saw betrayal on her face. Coach knew better than to call Piper half-blood. Being half-Native American meant she had suffered enough from being called half-blood.

The rider smiled at them and untied them quickly. "Alright you three, we need you to get these prisoners out of here. The Romans will undoubtedly be trying to get reinforcements and we need to get out of here before they arrive."

"Is this a rescue mission?" asked Coach. The rider shook his head.

"Sort of," he said. He turned and looked back at the battle. The Roman guards were down to only three, and the riders quickly finished them off. "We are recovering important battle plans that are being stored in the main house."

"Charlie!" shouted the leader of the riders. "Come on!"

Charlie turned to the three and back at the other riders. He grimaced, but nodded. "Okay, leave the prisoners behind, you three come with us."

"Who are you?" demanded Piper. Charlie turned to her.

"Charles Beckendorf, son of Hephaestus," he said. "Now let's go! We have to hurry!"

Charlie and Coach Hedge did not let Leo or Piper speak, and hauled them to their feet. They ran back to the other riders who stared at them.

"What's this?" asked the leader.

"Hedge here and these two were captured by the Romans. We can't leave them behind," said Charlie. The leader eyed them and nodded.

"There are more horses back in the stable. Get over there and saddle up. Once we finish at the big house, we'll meet you and get the hell out of here," said the leader. "And make sure you get a fourth horse ready. We have a son of Apollo in the hills watching the back of the house."

Hedge nodded and began hurrying over to the stable. Leo and Piper stood in place unsure of what to do. Piper had grown up around horses, but she had a feeling that this time they would need more than the typical saddle. Leo on the other hand felt completely frightened. He and horses did not get along. The leader glared at them.

"Go!" she barked. They both paled and scrambled after Coach. They had only gone ten feet when they heard a loud horn in the distance. They both turned back.

"Shit!" yelled the leader. "Their reinforcements are coming! Shit, they must have had some water in the house!"

'This just gets weirder and weirder,' thought Leo.

"Malcolm! Get us in the house! We're going to have company."

 **A/N: This chapter came out a little later than I was going for, but I think you'll appreciate why. I've finally found someone to help me as a beta reader and so I would like you all to welcome Ensis96 to the team!**

 **This chapter would have come out last week on Friday, but I only got three reviews. Thank you to the three of you that reviewed I really appreciate it! Remember everyone if you want this story to be updated faster keep on reviewing!**

 **Thank you to everyone that reviewed, favorited, and followed this story you guys are awesome! Until next time.**

 **Update 8/6/16: Alright everyone I'm going to be gone for a while to work at a camp, so the next chapter will not be out until next Friday or Saturday. Until then, I need your help with something. On my profile page there is a poll with four characters names on it. A major character will fall soon, and so I want you all to vote for who you'd like to SAVE. The character that gets the most votes will not be killed off... at least not yet. So please head over to my page and vote. Thanks for reading!**

 **Update 8/13/16: Hello again everyone. I just got back from camp today and as those of you that have worked summer camps know, I need a good day to recover. The next chapter won't be ready until Monday but I personally really enjoy where I'm going with this story so I hope you guys do as well. Until Monday!**


	6. Chapter 5

_6 Hours Before_

 _"What's this?" asked the leader._

 _"Hedge here and these two were captured by the Romans. We can't leave them behind," said Charlie. The leader eyed them and nodded._

 _"There are more horses back in the stable. Get over there and saddle up. Once we finish at the big house, we'll meet you and get the hell out of here," said the leader. "And make sure you get a fourth horse ready. We have a son of Apollo in the hills watching the back of the house."_

 _Hedge nodded and began hurrying over to the stable. Leo and Piper stood in place unsure of what to do. The leader glared at them._

 _"Go!" she barked. They both paled and scrambled after Coach. They had only gone ten feet when they heard a loud horn in the distance. They both turned back._

 _"Shit!" yelled the leader. "Their reinforcements are coming! Shit, they must have had some water in the house!"_

 _This just gets weirder and weirder, thought Leo._

 _"Malcolm! Get us in the house! We're going to have company."_

Piper wasn't sure what the hell was going on, but she was scared. Well, more scared than she had been earlier. The entire week had been a living nightmare. If it weren't for Leo and his terrible jokes she didn't think she'd survive it. First, they'd been abducted by crazy, Roman armor-wearing freaks and brought to a creepy farm. Then they were forced to wear these god awful rags. Why couldn't they wear nice clothes? She was sure there were better looking prison garbs out there. It was so cold outside and the clothes she was wearing did nothing to keep her warm. Leo seemed to radiate heat, though, and would let her and Hedge close enough to keep from getting frostbite. Piper shook her head and looked at where the newest crazy thing was. Her rescuers seemed even crazier than the first ones. They were taking on an entire farm of crazy psychopaths, and now Piper wasn't entirely sure she herself was sane.

"Piper!"

Piper shrieked and jumped away from the hand on her shoulder. She whirled around to see Leo standing there with a hint of a smirk.

"Piper let's go!"

She had never heard her friend so serious. She grabbed onto his hand and ran along with him behind the crazy whack jobs on horseback that had rescued them. Why they trusted them she had no idea and Piper was extremely confused as to how Coach Hedge knew them. Maybe they used to go to their school. That didn't seem likely seeing as how the newcomers didn't look much older than her.

The race back to the main house was just a blur to Piper, and when they reached the door two guards in the Roman-like armor ran out of the house. Piper paled and squeezed Leo's hand. Leo squeezed hers back and she could tell he was as nervous as she was. The guards pulled out swords and lunged at them. Piper screamed and dropped into the fetal position just as she heard the clang of metal on metal. When she looked up, she saw her rescuers engaging the guards in combat, their horses by the side of the house. Charles that had talked to Hedge was laying into the first two guards with his own sword, while a scrawny kid attacked from behind. The other guard was being taken care of by the second girl and another guy with blonde hair that had rescued Piper. When she looked closely, Piper thought she could just make out the grass pulling the guard down. The leader, a strong, intimidating girl sat on her horse waving towards the hills. Piper looked towards where she was waving but could see nothing. Soon the short skirmish was over and the two guards lay gasping for air in a puddle of their own blood. Piper rolled over onto her hands and knees and emptied out her stomach. Leo grimaced and patted her back.

"That's just lovely," he said. Piper wiped her mouth and stood up glaring at him. She made to slap at him when Coach Hedge hobbled over to them.

"Now's not the time," he hissed, "we have to get inside!"

"Why?" asked Leo incredulously, "There's bound to be tons more of those guards inside. And how do we know we can trust these people?" Coach Hedge grabbed Leo by the collar of his raggedy prison garbs.

"Because you're one of them!" Hedge snarled. Piper frowned in confusion. What on earth did that mean? She was one of these freaks?

"I'm what?" asked Leo. Piper thought she caught a flash of fear on his face, but it was gone before she could really make it out. Hedge smiled at Leo knowingly but made no comment. The strange goatman let go of Leo's shirt.

"Clarisse, what can we do to help?" asked Hedge. The leader on her horse dismounted and walked up towards the door. A rather imposing spear appeared in her hand, and she pointed it at Hedge's throat. Piper let out a strangled scream and Leo jumped in fear.

"Show me the sign," said Clarisse. Her voice was hard and carried a tired edge. Piper figured something was troubling her, and her only fear was that soon it would be her and Leo. She didn't want to be freed from one group of terrorists and then killed by another. Piper expected Coach Hedge to be frightened, but he only nodded and twisted his arms to show the side of his ribcage. There on his skin was a rather strange tattoo. Piper had never seen one like it. The tattoo seemed to glow a faint green. The design was that of a tree encircling itself in its own roots. Around it were strange letters that Piper couldn't make out from a distance. Clarisse, the leader, let go of Hedge with a nod. "We weren't expecting to run into any searchers on this trip."

"Well we weren't exactly expecting to be captured," retorted Hedge. Clarisse smirked but immediately turned to the scrawny kid beside her.

"Travis, get this door open. Michael is still covering the back door."

The scrawny kid, Travis, nodded and rushed towards the door. In less than a minute the thick front door was wide open and they piled up against the door frame. Charles pulled out two pots from his satchel, and, with a nod from Clarisse, he threw them inside the house. Piper heard two loud bangs and smoke began pouring out from the doorway. The whack jobs wrapped some sort of wet cloth around their mouths and rushed inside. Leo made to follow them, but Hedge stopped him, shaking his head.

"Not yet. We stay here and wait for them," he said.

"What are they doing here? Why can't we just leave?" asked Piper. Leo nodded wondering the same thing.

"They weren't sent here to rescue us you pinheads," Coach barked, "Clarisse is one of the Greek Generals. If she's here that means there is something very valuable in this building."

"A _Greek_ general?" asked Leo incredulously. "You mean like Ancient Greece, Hercules and Zeus Ancient Greece?"

" _Hera_ cles," corrected Hedge. "And yes. That Ancient Greece. The old world isn't as gone as you'd expect."

"What the hell are you talking about old man?" asked Leo. Hedge scowled and made to kick Leo's ass when a rather loud horn came from the hills behind the house. "What was that?"

"That would be the Romans," said Hedge with a grimace. "Not very nice people."

"You mean these guards are actual Romans?" asked Piper. She was completely confused. None of this was making any sense. Hedge nodded. Piper rubbed her eyes. This proved it. She _was_ insane.

[LINEBREAK]

"What exactly are we supposed to be looking for?" asked Charles. Clarisse yanked her spear out of the corpse of the last Roman guard, spraying blood over her armor, and turned to Charles.

"Plans. Could be in any form. In a binder, a book, a computer, anything."

Charles nodded and headed into one of the rooms off to the side. The main foyer of the house was absolutely beautiful, Clarisse had to admit. Well, at least it had been. The blood from the dead Roman guards really changed the scenery. Where elegant marble moldings used to line the walls, there was only broken bits of marble and blood. The furniture was in shambles and the chandelier was swaying dangerously up above. Clarisse eyed it warily but focused on the mission.

"I think I've got something!" shouted Katie from upstairs. Clarisse bounded up the steps, avoiding the bodies of the Roman guards, to find Katie holding a thick, leather-bound journal in her hands. Katie handed the journal over to Clarisse. Flipping through the pages revealed everything that Clarisse was hoping to find.

"This is it. Let's get out of here."

A loud horn from behind them sent a chill down her spine. Clarisse slipped the journal into her satchel and called for everyone to leave. She led them back outside where Coach Hedge was waiting with the two new demigods. She wasn't sure what to make of it. They were both powerful, she knew that, but she couldn't shake her unease. There was something off about the two demigods that Clarisse just couldn't place her finger on.

"You find what you're looking for?" asked Hedge. Clarisse nodded and patted her satchel.

"Yep. A bit too easy if you ask me." Clarisse paused. It _had_ been too easy. "Let's hurry. The reinforcements are close behind us. If we leave now we can make it back to the fort where we have three thousand hoplites waiting."

Clarisse looked at the hill Michael was on and waved her hand, motioning for him to return.

"Everyone grab your horse. We leave as soon as Michael arrives."

"Who's Michael?" asked Piper, the female demigod. Clarisse eyed her from the corner of her eye, but mounted her horse.

"Son of Apollo. He's watching our backs right now."

Clarisse reared her horse around to face the single road leading out of the plantation. Thankfully it led towards the hills where they could make a straight shot back to the fort.

"Come on Michael," she murmured, "come on!"

As if on cue, a single figure came charging down the hillside from behind the stables. Clarisse smiled. This mission was really turning out in their favor. She watched Michael rush towards them when she saw it. Behind Michael, an entire army of Roman cavalry were reaching the tops of the hills. Clarisse paled.

"Michael!" she screamed. "Hurry!"

Michael looked over his shoulder, and nearly lost his footing. The Roman cavalry were too swift, and were gaining on Michael. Clarisse realized she had two choices. Stay and hope Michael reached them and get them all killed in the process, or leave now and get the rest of them hopefully to safety.

"Get out of here!" shouted Michael. Clarisse could barely make out his voice over the sound of the stampeding army. Clarisse grimaced but turned back towards their exit.

"We ride."

"We can't just leave him here!" shouted Katie.

"Either we leave him and we all die, or the rest of us try to get back," said Malcolm. "Michael knew the risks involved. What matters right now is that journal."

Katie looked like she wanted to argue, but Clarisse turned her back and began racing away from the plantation. Hedge and the two other demigods began charging after her, and Charlie and Travis followed behind them. Katie looked behind her shoulder to find Michael struggling to get onto his horse in the stable, and raced after the rest of the group. Just as Katie reached the outskirts of the plantation she heard a cry of utter pain. A single tear trickled down her cheek, and she wiped it away furiously. This was war and there would always be casualties in war. She had just always hoped it wouldn't be one of her good friends.

 _3 Hours Before_

Clarisse rode them hard. After an hour of getting out of the hills, they had a large stretch of empty plains ahead of them. They had long left the Roman cavalry behind them, but Clarisse would not stop until they could no longer see ahead of them. Her body ached and she was sure her hips would murder her tomorrow, but she was determined to not lose anyone else. The guilt hadn't struck yet, but she was waiting for it.

"Clarisse we should stop and rest," called out Charles from beside her. "We need to rest. Hedge and the other two have spent the last few weeks imprisoned and tortured. They can't take any more abuse."

Clarisse grimaced but knew Charles was right. She slowed her horse down to a canter and eventually to a trot. "Alright, we'll set up camp for the night. Travis you take first watch."

They came to a full stop and hitched the horses to metal stakes that Charles had brilliantly thought to bring along. Clarisse grabbed the tents they had brought along for their trip and, with Malcolm's help, got them all set up in a few minutes. While they took care of that, Katie headed out into the tall grass to gather materials to start a fire and some vegetables and fruits to eat. It only took about an hour to get their camp set up. Clarisse was frustrated seeing as how they could usually get it ready in less than twenty minutes, but the loss of Michael and their exhaustion from the events that had transpired that day were finally beginning to take their toll on them all.

Hedge led Piper and Leo over to where Katie was halfheartedly trying to start a fire. They watched her sullenly for a moment, before sitting down on the ground around the fire. The sun was beginning to set in the distance and above them the stars were starting their nightly dance. Piper thought it was utterly romantic… or she would if she weren't in so much pain. She didn't know how she was still alive. She was sure that if she fell asleep she'd never wake up. Leo didn't look any better than she felt.

"So explain to me what's going on," said Leo. Piper could clearly hear the exhaustion in his voice. She nodded her head. She too wanted to know what was going on.

"I'm not sure where to start," said Coach Hedge.

"At the beginning."

"It might be best if Clarisse explains everything," Hedge remarked. He looked over at Clarisse who was just sitting down beside him. She paused before sighing and nodding.

"What do you two know of Ancient Greece?" she asked.

"Ummm I know there were gods and demigods and heroes and battles," said Leo. Clarisse nodded.

"That's part of it. There are twelve gods and goddesses that are more powerful than the rest. They're called the Olympians –"

"I'm sorry, did you say there are?" asked Piper. "As in they're still around?"

"Yes. That's exactly what I said," Clarisse smiled. "At least that's what your mortal textbooks will say. They'll say that there were once twelve Olympians and that there used to be demigods such as Heracles and Orion and Perseus." She stumbled on the last name, but caught herself. Hedge and the other demigods, who were just now sitting down, all frowned in sorrow. "However, they categorize all of these stories as myths, as legends. The truth is that the Olympians are still very much alive and in power."

"And the demigods?" asked Leo amazed.

"Those stories are all true. Sure the myths have become hyperbolized and exaggerated, but they're all true stories," said Malcolm. Leo and Piper eyed him strangely not having been introduced yet. "Sorry, I'm Malcolm."

Leo and Piper nodded and turned to the other two they hadn't yet met.

"I'm Katie, and this is Travis," said the other girl. Piper smiled.

"I'm Piper and this is Leo."

Katie and Piper shared a small smile. They immediately felt a strange connection, an almost sisterly bond.

"Anyways," said Clarisse impatiently. She wanted to get some sleep. "Those stories of the heroes are all completely true. They weren't just heroes, they were demigods. Half god, half man."

"Are you kidding me?" asked Leo. Clarisse shook her head no.

"That's not the crazy part. You see, as the world progressed towards the west, Olympus, the home of the gods, moved. Over the years Olympus stayed wherever the center of Western civilization is. Currently, Olympus is above the Empire State Building."

"This has to be the craziest thing I've ever heard," muttered Piper. "This has to be."

"Just wait," said Charles.

"Even crazier is that all of us here are demigods," continued Clarisse. "Malcolm here is the son of Athena. Charles is the son of Hephaestus, Katie the daughter of Demeter, and Travis the son of Hermes. I'm the daughter of Ares."

"You're serious aren't you," Leo asked. They all nodded. "What about you Coach?"

"I'm a satyr. I'm one of Pan's loyal servants."

"Pan?" asked Piper. "As in Peter Pan?"

Clarisse and the other demigods snickered as Coach's face burned red in rage. Before he could take his anger out on Piper, Clarisse interrupted.

"Pan is the god of nature. But let me continue," she shot Hedge a glare before turning back to Piper and Leo. "Yes we're serious. We really are the sons and daughters of the Greek gods and goddesses. You two are as well."

Leo jumped to his feet. "What?"

"She's lying," said Piper. She looked at Clarisse. "You're lying aren't you?"

Clarisse shook her head. "No I'm not. Judging by your eyes I'd say you're a daughter of Aphrodite, and Leo… I'm not entirely sure who your parent is."

Piper blushed. "A daughter of Aphrodite? The goddess of love and beauty?"

Clarisse nodded. "Yes, exactly."

"I'm really the daughter of a Greek goddess?" Piper whispered mostly to herself. Clarisse sighed in exasperation.

"Yes, yes you're the daughter of a Greek goddess. We haven't even gotten to what that means for you yet."

"And what exactly _does_ it mean?" asked Leo. Clarisse opened her mouth to respond when a glimmer of light above Piper and Leo startled her. Leo and Piper looked above their heads and gasped. Above Piper's head was a shimmering dove, and above Leo's was a bronze hammer. Charles stared at Leo in amazement before wrapping him in a massive bear hug.

"What is that for?" asked Leo as he struggled to pull away from the hug. Charlie smiled brightly as he pulled away.

"I'm just excited. I always love meeting another brother."

Leo smiled and nodded before Charles' words registered in his mind. "Wait brother?"

"Yes! Leo, you're a son of Hephaestus."

 **A/N: Here is the next chapter! Not as long as I wanted it to be but I thought this was a good place to end it. For those of you that did not catch the small update I put on the last chapter, there is a poll on my page. Unfortunately, there will be a major character death in the near future, and if you want your favorite character to survive, hurry over to my page and vote. The character with the most votes will not be killed.**

 **As for the story so far, I know many of you are anxiously waiting for Percy to make his return, and I promise you you'll see much more of him in the future. For now what is going here is crucial to the rest of the story.**

 **As always, thank you to everyone that favorited, followed, and reviewed this story you guys are awesome! Until next time!**


	7. Chapter 6

_1 Hour_

Percy watched the glowing pool of water, anxiety clawing its way out of his gut, as Clarisse led a group of demigods across the plains of Kansas. For the last few days he had seen Clarisse truly become the general he knew she could be. She, and five others, had taken on an entire encampment of well-trained Roman legionnaires… and won. On top of that, she had managed to rescue two demigods and a satyr scout. Needless to say, Percy was impressed. But this was the moment that would define Clarisse. The Greek party were camped just outside of Kansas City, unaware that a Roman army was marching close behind. In an hour they'd be overrun.

"Is there anything I can do? There has to be something I can do," Percy rasped out. The words seemed to make his anxiety worse. Erebus placed a firm hand on the young god's shoulder.

"There is nothing you cannot do, young Percy," Erebus said. Percy scowled.

"Give me a straight answer dammit!" He turned and glared at the primordial. "I'm not young. I'm a millennia old."

"Yes," Erebus said, "but to me you'll always be young."

Rolling his eyes Percy turned back at the small pool of water in front of him. The pool was the basis of Isis' powers, and allowed one to see any corner of the universe. Percy felt beads of sweat trickle down his brow as he watched his good friends sleep away as their impending doom followed them.

"You still haven't answered my question. What can I do? To them I'm dead, and my fractured soul won't let me step foot on the mortal plane."

"On the mortal plane, no. But there are many more planes to the universe." Erebus headed back to the chairs in the dark library. "Have you given much thought as to how you'll fix your soul?"

Percy shook his head. "Right now I'm more worried about the safety of those demigods, than my soul."

Erebus gave a hint of a smile, though Percy did not notice.

"You'll find a way," Erebus muttered. "You'll find a way."

Percy closed his eyes and focused. Mortals were capable of praying to the gods, and the gods would hear each prayer. Maybe there was a way for gods to communicate to demigods. Dreams wouldn't work since dreams required a physical body to connect from mind to mind. But thoughts, those were a different matter entirely. Percy wasn't entirely sure how that worked since they both seemed to come from the brain, but according to Erebus dreams would not work. Percy figured it had more to do with ancient laws than actual science.

Percy clenched his teeth and closed his eyes even tighter. _Focus, Percy, Focus_ , he thought to himself. His fists closed and his knuckles whitened from the sheer power behind his concentration. The small beads of sweat that were on his brow earlier became small streams, dripping into his eyes and burning with salty precision.

 _Clarisse_ , he thought, _Clarisse, can you hear me?_ He felt no connection. _Dammit! Clarisse! Clarisse!_ There it was: a glimmer of a connection. It was so faint Percy wasn't entirely sure it was real, but he pushed against it. He pictured a tunnel in his mind, connecting him to Clarisse and pushed his thoughts through it. _Clarisse LaRue! Do you hear me?_

 _Wha-What? Who's there?_ came a groggy response. Percy whooped in glee. He opened his eyes and looked into the pool of water. Clarisse was slowly lifting her head to look around. One of the other demigods that had come with her was on watch, though Percy was not entirely sure who they were. Clarisse frowned and looked over at the other demigod.

"Malcolm, was that you?" she asked. The other demigod shook his head slowly.

"Was what me?" he asked. _Malcolm, son of Athena, that's who it is_ , thought Percy. He did not know him very well personally, but Malcolm was regarded as one of the best strategists at Camp.

Clarisse shook her head and pulled herself up to a sitting position. "Nevermind. Must have been a dream." She looked over her shoulder to where the moon was just beginning its nightly rise. "What time is it?"

"I only just started my watch. Not too late, probably around 9 or so."

"Damn," Clarisse murmured. "Go back to sleep, Malcolm. I'll take over the next two shifts. Won't be able to go back to sleep now."

"You sure, general?"

"Yea, I'm sure."

Malcolm nodded his thanks and walked over to his sleeping bag, crept inside, and fell asleep instantly. Clarisse rubbed her tired eyes and sat down in the spot Malcolm had previously occupied by the fire. She pulled out her spear and a small whetstone and began sharpening the spearhead as quietly as she could. Percy smiled, though his anxiety still wasn't fading. This was his chance.

 _Clarisse_ , he sent the thought to her once more. Now that he knew how it was much easier. Clarisse' head popped up and she grabbed her spear with both hands, dropping the whetstone. She looked around eyes watching out for a hint of where the intruder was. _Clarisse calm your ass down. I'm not out there. I'm in your mind,_ Percy said.

Clarisse sat back down utterly confused. _What? Who are you? How are you doing this? What do you want?_

Percy clutched his temples. Too many questions. _Clarisse shut up and listen. You need to get everyone up and moving. The Romans are marching an army of ten thousand legionnaires. They're only an hour behind you. You have to get back to the fort in Missouri and alert the guards._

That got her attention. Clarisse stood up and immediately looked behind her to where they had come only a few hours earlier. _How do you know this?_ She asked.

 _I know everything_ , Percy responded. It wasn't true, but he figured he could have a bit of fun while he was in his mini exile.

 _Who are you?_ Clarisse repeated her question. _How do I know I can trust you?_

 _I am the bane of the mighty Minotaur. Now get moving!_

Clarisse' eyes widened and she looked up at the stars towards where Percy's constellation hung. _Percy?_

Percy didn't respond to that. _Go!_ Was all he said. Clarisse ran to her bag and grabbed her things, hastily putting her sleeping bag back in her satchel.

"Everyone get up! Now!" she hissed out. Everyone sat up startled and looked at her confused.

"What's going on, general?" asked Katie.

"Rome is marching towards us right now with a massive army! We have to move! We have to alert the troops!"

That got everyone moving. In minutes the camp was packed up and they were mounting their horses.

"How do you know this, Clarisse?" asked Charles.

Clarisse shrugged and snapped the reigns on her horse. "Iris message from one of our spies." She didn't know how to explain that their thought-to-be-dead friend had sent her a message to her mind. Thankfully they seemed to accept her response and they all began riding as hard as possible back to Missouri. Kansas City was eerily quiet, but Clarisse didn't focus on it much. Getting back was her first priority.

Percy felt his anxiety slowly subside, but he still felt worried for his friends. If they didn't reach Missouri in time they would all be killed and the Greeks would be caught completely unaware. However, even if they made it back in time, Percy wasn't entirely sure the Greeks would be able to hold off the Roman legionnaires. The fort on the Missouri side only housed five thousand Greek demigods, satyrs, and nymphs. Despite their excellent training, they wouldn't stand a chance against a rabid Roman army.

"They'll be fine God of Fate," said Erebus from behind Percy. Percy's eyes widened. He was the god of Fate. How did he forget that? He placed his hands onto the pool of water and focused on seeing the near future. For a moment nothing happened, but then the water churned and the image changed from Clarisse and her soldiers to the fort. It was in flames and Percy paled as he saw Clarisse and the Greeks lying dead, impaled by spears and spikes.

"I will not let this happen," he growled. Percy closed his eyes in rage and focused his energy on Clarisse' group. With no small amount of power, he willed the horses to gallop faster. He gave the horses more strength and stamina, and, with more focus, relaxed their muscles so they felt no fatigue. It was the most Percy could do without really screwing up fate.

Percy watched with relief as the demigods reached the fort in just under an hour. They rode straight in through the main gate, Clarisse shouting for them to go on immediate alert. In minutes the efficient Greek army was at arms, manning every watch tower and lining each wall with archers. Three archers with fire arrows were ready to lite the tar line surrounding the fort.

Clarisse jumped off her horse, and after barking orders to her commanders, led her party to the stables.

"Leave your horses here and get to your stations. Coach, get Leo and Piper to the main bunks. They're not trained yet," she ordered. Everyone ran to where they were positioned, and Coach Hedge shoved Leo and Piper towards the bunks. Clarisse took a deep breath and headed to the command tent. Inside several of her highest ranking soldiers were bickering over a map of the surrounding area. When she stepped inside they stood at attention.

"Sir, what are we dealing with?" asked another son of Ares. Clarisse stuck her spear into the ground by the entrance and walked over to the map. She pointed at Kansas City.

"An army of ten thousand Roman legionnaires are marching towards us as we speak," Clarisse said. "They will most likely have chariots and cavalry somewhere behind their main infantry." She looked over towards the back of the tent where Pollux, son of Dionysus, stood at attention. "Pollux! Send an IM to Chiron. We need reinforcements here ASAP!"

The young demigod nodded and ducked out of the tent towards the Iris message station. Clarisse growled with frustration. She reached into her satchel and pulled out the plans her team had managed to steal.

"Michael died to get these plans. Hopefully we can get some use out of them." Clarisse had to stop and compose herself, guilt creeping its way into her gut.

Malcolm stepped into the tent and grabbed the plans before the others could. "I'll take a look at these. Could take a few hours to translate the Latin."

"We don't have hours. I need those plans translated yesterday."

Malcolm grimaced but nodded. He headed towards the back of the tent, grabbed a few other Athena kids, and began to work on translating the plans. Clarisse looked up to the roof of the tent. The knowledge that Percy was out there somewhere gave her hope, despite the fact that she would beat his ass when she saw him next. If the hunters didn't get to him first. She paled at the idea of Artemis getting her hands on Percy again. _Good luck, Perce_.

[LINEBREAK]

Jason and Mathan opened the door to the Zeus cabin to leave, but Chiron stood in the doorway, hand stretched out about to grab the door handle. Jason frowned. Chiron looked disheveled; his hair was a mess and his eyes were bloodshot.

"Chiron what's wrong?" asked Jason. Chiron shook his head, trying to gather his wits.

"I've just gotten word from Clarisse. Missouri has fallen. The Romans have launched a full scale attack."

Jason and Mathan paled. This certainly made finding Clarisse easier, but they had not expected the Romans to attack so soon. Jason led Mathan and Chiron to the armory where his armor was getting repaired by the Hephaestus campers.

"Pollux sent me an IM only a few minutes ago. Clarisse led a small scouting party into Kansas in order to retrieve some valued intel. They returned about an hour ago with an army of ten thousand Romans behind them," said Chiron. He galloped ahead of Jason and Mathan as they left the armory, Jason's armor fully repaired. "We need the reinforcements on their way now. The Second Calvary Division of Chicago is currently scouting the area surrounding the border of Missouri, Nebraska, and Kansas."

Jason nodded as he placed his helm on his head. He turned to Mathan. "Get an IM out to Jack Cypher and the Second. Tell them their orders are now to head south towards Kansas City. They're to flank the Roman army, cutting them off from any reinforcements and provisions."

"Will do. Where will you be?" asked Mathan. He slipped into his own armor, a crafty design of his own making.

"I'll be gathering our forces here. We have around twenty thousand Hoplites garrisoned here. With any luck we'll be able to reach Kansas City."

"I hate to break it to you, Jason," said Mathan, "but we are in New York. It will take days to reach Kansas City on horseback."

"We won't be going on horseback," Jason pointed at Chiron. "Chiron has graciously brought his relatives with him. We'll be riding with the Party Ponies. I think we'll make it to Kansas City by early afternoon."

Chiron nodded and galloped away to prepare his brethren for the attack. Mathan eyed Jason for a moment.

"What?" asked Jason exasperatedly. "We don't have time for this."

"Just watch your back, man. Remember the prophecy." With that Mathan turned and left for the Big House. Jason rubbed his eyes, and scowled as the sweat from his hands burned his eyes. Once his eyes stopped stinging, Jason headed towards the barracks to get the men ready. _They'll flee, betrayed and broken_. The words rang like a funeral march in his brain.

[LINEBREAK]

Clarisse stood upon the ramparts of the fort. In the distance she could finally see the Roman banners. They were too far to make out what sort of army they were facing. If it were only infantry, they'd have a fighting chance. Cavalry would make things more difficult. Cavalry would force them to remain in the fort.

"Sir," said a voice from beside her. She turned to find Pollux.

"Any word from Camp?"

"The Second Cavalry Division of Chicago is currently headed back here. They'll flank the Romans while we hold their front."

Clarisse nodded. "You're dismissed, soldier."

Pollux saluted and left for his post. Clarisse turned back towards the Roman banners. They were closing the distance on them fast. Behind the red Roman banners, Clarisse began to see purple banners. _Shit_ , she thought with a grimace. They had brought Calvary with them. She turned to a soldier beside her.

"How many horses do we have in the stables here?" she asked. The soldier continued to stare out towards the Romans.

"Around forty or fifty. The cavalry division we had garrisoned here left just after you did to retrieve provisions."

"Where did they go?"

"I don't know, sir."

"Who gave the order?"

"Commander Rodriguez, sir."

Clarisse frowned. "Thank you, soldier. Castor!"

Castor, Pollux's twin brother, appeared beside her.

"Sir?"

"Take command here. I'm returning to the command center. When those banners reach half way from there to here, sound the horn." When Castor nodded Clarisse turned quickly and practically ran to the command center. Inside, the other commanders and officers stood bickering with one another.

"Where is Commander Rodriguez?" barked out Clarisse. The tent grew quiet and they looked around at each other.

"He left a few days ago, sir," said Jake Mason, a son of Hephaestus. "He ordered the cavalry to suit up and they left to get provisions."

"What provisions exactly?"

Jake frowned and looked at the others for help.

"Swords, rations, and horse feed, sir," said an officer at the table. Clarisse pursed her lips.

"Why couldn't he just wait for the convoy to arrive with the provisions?" she asked. They shrugged.

"Said it was crucial we received them now. Thought he could get them and return faster than the convoy could," said the officer. Clarisse nodded slowly. Something seemed off about this.

"Wait a second," said Jake. Everyone turned to him. "The convoy was carrying more than just rations and swords. New recruits were on board that convoy to be trained and garrisoned here."

Clarisse felt her chest tighten. She waved the officers away, and when they returned to their bickering, she rushed over to Malcolm and the other Athena translators. "Malcolm!"

Malcolm looked up from his work.

"Do you have anything translated yet?"

Malcolm paled and nodded slowly. "We do, but you won't like it."

"Just give it to me straight."

He pointed at a section of the intel marked with Ancient Greek letters and hurriedly scratched notes. "This is a list of Greek soldiers that the Romans are in communication with."

"Wouldn't our tattoos prevent the Romans from communicating with any of us?" asked Clarisse confused. Malcolm shook his head.

"The tattoo makes it so that a Greek cannot secretly spy on us. However, if a Greek openly rebels and defects to the Roman side their tattoo will fade away."

"What happens if one attempts to spy?"

"Their tattoo lights up like a beacon. Not even metal can cover it."

Clarisse looked at the other translators. "Have there been any 'beacon' sightings?"

They shook their heads.

"Okay so we have no spies. Does that mean the Greeks on that list have openly defected to the Roman side?"

Malcolm nodded. "This is what you won't like."

"Do I personally know anybody on the list?"

"Two."

Clarisse closed her eyes, her heart began to beat faster, and a lump began to form in her throat. "Who?"

"Chris Rodriguez," Clarisse expected that name, "and Michael Yew."

[LINEBREAK]

Artemis scowled as she forced herself to march onwards. Alaska was miserable so far. It was cold and she couldn't see any further than a foot in front of her face. Without her godly powers, she had to keep a sharp eye on the ground and rely on her skill to keep from falling off the mountain sides. It gave her a very real idea as to what her hunters went through. She was beyond impressed and grateful for their loyal companionship.

"Where are we headed, milady?" asked Thalia. Artemis struggled to hear her over the wind and through her thick, wool head wrap.

"There are rumors on Olympus that the Romans are attempting to capture Hera and hold her hostage."

"You think there's more to it?"

"Yes, I do. And I think we'll find our answers here."

"What makes you so sure?"

Artemis turned to respond when the ground began to shake. They all pulled their bows out, notching their arrows. A massive, dark figure began to lumber towards them. Artemis felt as if the wind were knocked out of her lungs.

"Hunters, what a pleasant surprise," said the figure. His hair was long and flapped in the wind along with his heavy cloak. "My master will be ever so pleased that you've joined us."

"Orion," hissed out the goddess of the hunt.

 **A/N: I apologize for the wait. I had the chapter ready for some time, but there were some technical difficulties in getting it to my beta for reviewing. Hope you guys enjoyed it. The story is finally progressing towards my main plot which I'm excited for.**

 **Thank you to the few people that reviewed the last chapter and who voted in the poll on my page. There is still time to vote on the poll, so if you haven't done so yet, please do so. You can vote up to two times.**

 **Thank you for reading, reviewing, favoriting, and following you guys are awesome!**


	8. Chapter 7

Percy felt his energy drain as he focused on two visions at once. Below him, in Erebus' pool, were two images going on simultaneously. On the right was the battle for Kansas City. Clarisse was valiantly holding the fort, though Percy knew it was only a matter of time. The left side of the pool was what drained his energy. Artemis and her hunters were locked in battle with Orion the giant, but the fact that they were in Alaska made it nearly impossible for Percy to keep an eye on them despite Erebus' power.

"Gods dammit!" he screamed in frustration. He slammed his fist onto the water, splashing the contents onto the stone floor shattering both images. "How am I supposed to help when I can barely see one group, and I can't even join the other?"

Erebus scratched at his chin, eyeing the mess on the floor. He stood for a moment, thinking, before snapping his fingers. The water instantly disappeared and returned once more to the pool.

"You've traveled many places in your many years, haven't you?" he asked. Percy turned to him, his face screwed in confusion.

"What does that have to do with any of this?"

Erebus did not seem fazed by the accusatory tone. "Surely you've visited worlds and other places in which death does not have any power over life."

'What the fucking Hades does that mean?' Percy wondered.

"Aye, there've been a few," he said. Then it clicked. "There've been a few! How could I have forgotten! There have even been several here on this earth!"

Erebus smiled at him. For a god who had lived so long, Percy still had much to learn.

"The answers to your problems lie with them, Percy. Do not forget that the Greek pantheon is the only one the mortals on this world have worshipped. While not all are true gods, such as Baal or Chemosh, many still exist though dormant."

"How is that possible?" asked Percy. "Shouldn't they have faded long ago once they were no longer worshipped?"

"What does fading mean to you?"

Percy blanched. "Fading is fading," he said. "You fade, you're gone. Poof. No mas."

Erebus shook his head and rubbed his eyes wearily. Percy thought he heard the old man mumble a curse, but could not quite make out what it was.

"You have much to learn, Percy, before you will be able to return to the mortal world."

"Then teach me!"

"You must learn these things for yourself," Erebus said. "I cannot teach you."

"Then where will I learn? There aren't exactly many people around here to teach me."

"Who says that you must remain here?" asked Erebus, a twinkle shining in his eye.

"Where will I go?"

"I believe that is my cue," said another voice from behind Percy. Percy whirled around startled before breaking out into a smile. A tall figure with bright blonde hair strode into the hall. A large war axe and shield were sheathed on his back, and a ram's horn was strapped to his side.

"Heimdall, my old friend! It's been too long!"

[LINEBREAK]

Clarisse screamed in savage rage as she pierced her spear into the chest of a Roman legionnaire. The Roman cavalry had been forced to march behind their infantry. As such, Clarisse led a small contingent of Hoplites to distract the Romans while the archers prepared for the massive wave to hit. Clarisse's troops would not hold out long, but she couldn't afford to think that way.

'We hold until Jason and Mathan arrive with the reinforcements,' she growled to herself. A strangled scream brought her attention to her side, where another Greek lay clutching her slit gut. Clarisse rushed to the fallen girl's side and knelt down.

"Cover the general!" shouted a soldier somewhere behind her. Clarisse didn't look around to see who had issued the command, but immediately Hoplites formed a blockade around her and the girl.

"Hang on with me, Caroline," Clarisse murmured. "We need to get back to the fort!"

"Leave me general!" Caroline grunted. "I won't… make… it…"

Caroline's eyes rolled back and she immediately grew heavier in Clarisse's arms. Clarisse snarled in rage and stood up. A shimmering light of red haze enveloped her. The soldier that had called for the rest to cover her noticed and called for a retreat. Clarisse didn't register what was said or what happened. She only had eyes for the Roman soldiers before her. Her spear rested calmly in her hands, the blood on it glistening in the setting sun. The Romans eyed her for a moment. When the rest of the Greek Hoplites had retreated back to hold the entrance to the fort, Clarisse yelled. The cry was magnificent and earth shattering. The Romans nearly dropped their swords as the daughter of Ares, god of war, charged towards them.

A sword came slashing at her shins, but Clarisse leaped over it, twisting her body as she flew through the air. As she landed her spear thrusted out piercing two soldiers at once. Another Roman charged at her, gladius coming down in a downward arc. Clarisse let go of her spear and rolled to the right. The gladius came down splitting one of the pierced soldiers' head in two. The Roman stared in shock at what had happened, not registering the Greek general barreling into him. Clarisse knocked him to the ground, and with military precision, snapped his neck cleanly.

Clarisse grabbed onto the shaft of her spear and hauled it out of the two Roman bodies that now lay dead on the ground. Blood splattered onto her armor as the spear was pulled out. Instead of making her armor slicker and harder to move, it added to the blessing of Ares that enveloped her.

Five Roman centurions came forward to challenge her. These were more calculating, more strategic soldiers than the legionnaires had been. Half were ready to attack while the others were ready to defend against Clarisse. None of them expected the demigod to slam her spear into the ground, and none of them expected the spear to release a torrent of energy outwards knocking them to the ground. Their exceptionally heavy, centurion armor became their downfall as Clarisse killed them all before they had a chance to regain their footing.

She glared at the wall of legionnaires that began to form up behind their fallen companions. Clarisse clutched her spear, her hands itching to fight. The enemy wall began marching towards her, shields interlocking to prevent Clarisse's spear from penetrating their lines. She glared at the moving shields. There was nothing she could do on her own. These were well trained soldiers that knew how to work a wall. If she attempted to get close, swords would jut out from any gap to slash at her. Clarisse backed away towards the gate. The Greek soldiers parted and allowed her to retreat into the fort.

"Everyone inside!" she called out. The Greeks to their credit did not turn and run into the fort. They kept their eyes and their spears trained on the Romans as they backed into the fort. "Shut the gate!"

Her command rippled through her troops, and in less than a minute, the gate to the fort was closed shut. The Romans stopped their push towards the fort and pulled back. Clarisse climbed up to the top of the ramparts and watched them retreat. The sky was turning blood red as the sun set. Ash created a smoky haze over the battlefield from the burning fires the Romans were lighting. Clarisse turned to the archers beside her.

"They're planning something. They hope that by pulling back we'll give them time to gather their forces. Light your arrows."

The Apollo campers nodded and dipped their arrows into a barrel of Greek fire, igniting the tips. As one they notched their arrows, and together they aimed and fired at the retreating Romans. The Romans were not expecting the sudden attack and so many fell to the arrows. The Greek fire on the arrows did not extinguish on impact; rather, it exploded outwards in all directions. The soldiers nearby began screaming as the fire burned their armor and them along with it.

Clarisse nodded in satisfaction. She lifted her hand to unleash another volley when the Romans that survived the volley knelt on the ground, their shields facing the fort. The Roman archers knelt behind the legionnaires, notched arrows of their own, and let loose their own volley.

"Take cover!" shouted Clarisse into the fort. The Greeks scrambled to hide beneath their shields, but several were hit in their arms or legs. "Castor, continue firing volleys. We cannot allow them to recover and gather themselves for an attack."

Castor saluted and began barking orders at the archers on the ramparts. Clarisse watched them unleash another volley of Greek fire arrows, and then she headed down into the fort towards the command center. Inside her commanders were yelling at each other. She ignored them and headed towards Pollux.

"Any word from Jason?" she asked. Pollux nodded.

"Chiron said they'll be here by nightfall."

Clarisse nodded. "Let me know if you hear from them again."

Things were looking worse by the minute. The Romans still had not sent their cavalry at them, but it was only a matter of time. A thought came to her. A dark, morbid thought. Chris Rodriguez and his traitorous cavalry were somewhere out there waiting. They were waiting for Clarisse's reinforcements. Chiron and Jason were riding into a trap. They'd never reach the fort. Clarisse rushed back to Pollux.

"IM Chiron now!"

"Yes, sir!" said Pollux. He splashed a fountain and threw a drachma in. "Oh Iris, benevolent goddess, show me Chiron."  
The rainbow rippled when the drachma passed through, but it fell on the other side. Pollux blinked.

"What the Hades?" he murmured. He repeated the offering, but the drachma passed through again hitting the ground. "General I have no idea what's going on."

Clarisse grimaced. "I do. Iris has been captured by the Romans."

[LINEBREAK]

Percy scratched his chin as he listened the Heimdall speak.

"So what you're saying is that I can still travel to Asgard?"

Heimdall nodded. "Not just that you can, but that you must. If you wish to recover the fragments of your soul you need to come to Asgard. Asgard is not part of the physical world. It is much like this place."

"Once I'm in Asgard I must find Yggdrasil and retrieve a shard," Percy said. Erebus nodded. Heimdall furrowed his eyebrows.

"That won't exactly be easy."

"Why the Hades not?"

"Because Yggdrasil is the sacred world tree guarded by Odin himself. The All-Father will not allow you to simply take a piece of the tree. You must prove yourself to him."

Percy cursed. "Great. Just when things were looking up. Any idea what Odin will want from me?"

Heimdall shrugged. "Could be anything."

Percy nodded.

"Good luck, Percy," said Erebus clasping his shoulder. "Return to me once you've retrieved the shard."

"I will. Thank you," Percy said with a smile. He turned to Heimdall. "Lead the way, my friend."

Heimdall nodded and, thrusting his sword into the ground, opened the bifrost. Percy stepped forward into it and the two disappeared from the realm of Erebus. The journey did not take more than a few minutes, and when they landed Percy fell to the ground.

Heimdall barked out a laugh as Percy pulled himself to his feet. Percy glared at him.

"Shut up, I'm sure you fall occasionally too."

"I was born with perfect balance, Percy," Heimdall said with a smirk.

"As was I. I'm the friggin god of balance."

"On Earth, yes. Your powers do not work here, Percy. You should know that. You've been here before."

"Whatever," mumbled Percy. "Come to Earth when I get my soul up and running again and we'll see who has the better sense of balance."

Heimdall smirked and nodded. "I accept your challenge. Now come. Odin is expecting us."

"The All-Father is expecting us? How does he know I'm here?"

"The All-Father knows all, Percy. Plus, he is the one that ordered me to come find you."

"Why's that?" asked Percy confused. Heimdall shook his head.

"That is not for me to say. All will be revealed by Odin himself."

Percy followed Heimdall towards Odin's palace which sat in the heart of Asgard. The palace soared high into the sky, its spirals seemingly endless. Percy had only been to Asgard once, but that had been centuries ago. Before the fall of Greece. He had never met Odin, only corresponding with Heimdall, the gate keeper. Percy wondered briefly if Heimdall might be one of the gatekeepers whose blood he required, but he remembered that it had to be a Primordial of Greek ancestry.

"This place is incredible," Percy said. He struggled to keep the awe out of his voice. Olympus could not even come close in comparison. He decided that when he took the throne back from Zeus he was going to remodel Olympus to look like Asgard.

Heimdall smiled as he looked around. "It is quite marvelous, isn't it? Nothing quite like it in any of the nine realms."

"Really?" asked Percy. "There's got to be something out there close to this."

"Not that my eyes have seen," Heimdall said. "We are nearing the throne room."

Heimdall looked at Percy's garbs. Percy was draped in a worn cloak that Erebus had found lying about.

"We'll need to find something more suitable for meeting with the King."

"Well normally I'd use my godly powers to bring my typical cloak to me, but…" Percy trailed off. He had gone sixteen years without his godly powers, and it had been sixteen years of tremendous stress. Gods were not made to lose power. "We need to hurry. The sooner we meet with Odin the sooner I can continue with my quest to restore my soul."

Heimdall shook his head. "Odin would have your head if you show him disrespect by presenting yourself in that dreadful garb." He scratched his head. "I know of a shop nearby that might have just what you need."

Percy followed Heimdall down a side street that ran along the outside of the palace. The streets were made of something akin to gold, and jewels of all sorts lined the outside of the streets. Several small shops sat on either side. Each sold roughly the same thing though at different prices.

Heimdall finally stopped in front of a store that had an elegant cloak in the windowsill. Percy admired it for a moment before taking the initiative and entering first. Heimdall exchanged pleasantries with the store clerk before he purchased clothes that would suit Percy. Percy slipped into the changing room in the back. The clothes fit him well. The fabric was soft, almost like silk, and lined with gold the same color as his eyes. Silver buckles and buttons lined the tunic from his neck to his waist, and his pants had two silver stripes down the sides. It was very nice. Percy hated it.

"Do I really have to wear this miserable stuff?" he asked exasperatedly.

"Yes," Heimdall laughed, "you have to wear that to meet with Odin. I'll bring your tattered cloak with us so that you may change after your meeting."

Percy grumbled to himself as Heimdall led him to Odin's throne room.

"Give me armor and I'll be good. I feel like a fool."

[LINEBREAK]

Clarisse watched her commanders bicker on and on. She was growing increasingly agitated. With Iris captured, they wouldn't be able to communicate secretly with their reinforcements. The Romans would know all of their plans. Jason and his cavalry were riding into a trap and there was nothing they could do to prevent it. Things were going to Hades, and Clarisse was unsure what to do. As her soldiers argued, she turned to Malcolm who sat stoically beside her.

"What do you think we should do?" she asked. Malcolm pulled out a scroll from under his shirt.

"I've been going over the blueprints of this fort, and I think I've got a solution."

Clarisse nodded and whistled loudly. The arguments stopped instantly and everyone turned to her.

"Listen up! Malcolm's got a plan that may get us out of this mess."

"This fort was built with the mindset that it would be the first line of defense against a Roman invasion," said Malcolm. "However, we knew that there might come a day that the Romans would overcome our forces. Under this fort are a series of tunnels that lead a few miles away. If we can get our forces into the tunnels, we should be able to seal the Romans out and escape with minimal losses."

"What about all of our documents? Our horses?" asked one soldier.

"If we do this, it must be now. Our documents must be burned. The horses won't fit into the tunnels so they must remain here."

"Where is the entrance to the tunnels?" asked Clarisse. Malcolm pointed at the stables on the map of the fort.

"The entrance is just behind the stables behind a secret door. We won't have much time to get everyone inside. We have to do this immediately," Malcolm said. Clarisse nodded and looked at her commanders.

"Ready the troops. Get everyone into the tunnels now. The archers will stay on the ramparts until everyone else is inside to keep the Romans from knowing what we are up to," Clarisse ordered. Everyone nodded and scrambled to spread the word to their troops when the ground shook. Clarisse stumbled backwards and fell to the ground. Struggling to her feet, she hurried outside using the walls for support. Outside, her soldiers were all getting back to their feet having been caught off guard by the earthquake.

The ground shook consistently every second as Clarisse ran to the top of the ramparts where the archers were bracing themselves. She looked over the walls towards the Roman lines. The sea of red split, and striding towards the foot was the largest monster Clarisse had ever seen. It had black hair and white pits for eyes.

" _Di Immortales_ ," she cursed. Smiling sadistically was Enceladus, the bane of Athena.

 **A/N: Agh it's been so long! The last month has been insanely busy for me. I apologize for the wait in getting this chapter out. It had to be just right since it sets up the rest of the story so I tried not to rush myself in this. I was a bit disappointed in the lack of reviews for the last two chapters... the more reviews I get the faster I'll get chapters written so please let me know what you guys think and what you'd like to see in the next chapter. The poll is still available on my page so go vote!**

 **Thank you all for sticking with me! Thanks for reviewing, favoriting, and following! Y'all are awesome.**


	9. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: This story is not being written for profit of any kind. I do not own Percy Jackson.**

The Greeks abandoned the walls of the fort and formed a massive Phalanx formation. Clarisse eyed the fort gates warily, waiting for Enceladus to break through any minute. Sweat formed on her forehead and she wiped it away furiously. Beside her Katie had her eyes closed, growing weeds and plants in front of them to slow the incoming wave of Romans. On her other side, Charlie stood with a small remote control in his hand that linked with several traps he and the other Hephaestus campers had set up. The traps and the plants wouldn't stop the enemy, but hopefully, they'd give the Greeks enough time to escape. As Clarisse stood there, some of the soldiers were hurrying to take the important documents and horses through the tunnels. Those documents could not fall into enemy hands.

"You hear that?" muttered a soldier behind her. There was a ripple of murmured agreement through the ranks. Clarisse tilted her head ever so slightly to listen. The sound of Roman armor clinking sounded as though it were leaving the fort. She furrowed her brow in confusion. Why would they be fleeing? Unless…

A loud screech echoed through the air causing the Greeks to clutch their ears in pain. Clarisse gripped her spear tightly.

"Hold!" she shouted out. She could hear her soldiers tighten their formation and prepare their spears. The sound of Enceladus' footsteps grew louder as did the screeching when suddenly a dark figure flew over the fort walls. The figure had large, bat-like wings and wielded a sword in each hand.

Kampê smiled with evil glee at the demigods before her. Clarisse could hear Piper and Leo shrieking behind the soldiers. She felt bad that they hadn't had time to train and were already being forced to fight, but she had no choice. She lifted her spear and pointed it at Kampê.

"Fire!" A volley of arrows lit with Greek fire flew through the air towards the monster. Kampê hissed with anger and ducked down beneath the path of the arrows. She dropped back down to the ground and pointed her scimitars at the demigods. Behind her the gates to the fort were ripped apart and Enceladus marched in. The giant smiled like a spoiled child and lifted up his mace into the sky.

"You die, demigods!"

Clarisse had figured that Enceladus, being the Bane of Athena, would be rather intelligent, but it seemed to be the opposite. Made sense, she thought. The opposite of intelligence is stupidity. She didn't have enough time to order her troops to advance, when monsters began scrambling over the fort walls. The banners she had seen earlier were not the Roman cavalry. They were legions of monsters.

Drakons and demons raced towards the Greeks with Kampê leading them. Katie grew the weeds up high, but they did little to stop Kampê's poisoned swords. Charlie's traps blew up several monsters but not nearly enough.

"Forward!" cried out Clarisse, and the Phalanx pushed forward. Their long spears pointed out towards the oncoming army while their shields covered them like a box. The monsters crashed into their spears several exploding into dust. They pushed forward no one noticing that the dust began to reform until it was too late. A scream from the middle of the Phalanx broke Clarisse's attention enabling a disfigured monster to slash her left arm. She snarled and drove her shield into the monster's face before thrusting her spear into its gut. The monster exploded into dust. And then it reformed.

Clarisse paled and killed it again only for it to reform a second time. They're not dying, she thought.

" _Di immortales_ ," she cursed. "Fall back!"

Charlie and Katie fought alongside her as they pulled their lines back, but the sheer number of undying monsters was overwhelming. There were more Greek soldiers dying than Clarisse could have imagined. She knew they'd take heavy losses, but this was too much. A scream tore through the air and Clarisse turned to see Leo and Piper standing over a limp body. Clarisse stabbed a demon and hurried towards Leo and Piper, not waiting for the monster to reform. She fell to her knees by the limp body and turned it over. Charlie and Katie pulled Leo and Piper away towards the escape tunnel.

Clarisse put two fingers to Coach Hedge's throat, but there was no pulse. He was dead, a black arrow in his gut. She narrowed her eyes and turned towards the advancing monster army. On the fort wall directly behind Enceladus, stood Michael Yew with his bow drawn. He rained down arrows on the Greek army. Clarisse roared in anger, but could not find a way to reach him. She turned to Charlie and Katie.

"Do we have anymore explosives left?" she asked. Charlie nodded.

"We have two large barrels of Greek fire by the tunnel."

Clarisse wiped blood out of her eyes from a cut she had not known was there. "How many soldiers have made it through the tunnel?"

Charlie shrugged. "Malcolm and a few others managed to get through, but everyone is either dead or still fighting."

Clarisse turned towards the monster army that was tearing her soldiers apart. Literally. She watched as Enceladus and Kampê crushed a small group of brave Greek soldiers guarding the stables. She had no choice, and as difficult as it was for her, she had to leave them behind.

"Get us to the tunnel," she said. "And then blow the entrance behind us."

[LINEBREAK]

Artemis narrowed her eyes at the sight of Orion. She had hoped to put those horrid memories behind her, and yet here he was. It was impossible really. Orion was imprisoned in the sky… unless… Artemis frowned. The only way Orion could be here would be if Uranus had joined Gaea's uprising. It made sense in a way. The two were lovers, or at least, they had been. If Uranus thought there would be some way for him to reunite with his wife, Artemis figured he'd jump at the chance. Percy, she thought. She had sent him to the sky to be part of Uranus' court. If Uranus has sided with Gaea… Artemis shook her head. Now wasn't the time to dwell on those thoughts.

"I do not have all day, hunters," challenged Orion. Artemis grew to her godly size and brought out her bow, her godly weapon. Her hunters joined her and each notched an arrow imbued with moonlight. Artemis did not call out any orders. She fired her arrow directly at Orion's head. The giant smiled and swung his spear as if to block the arrow, but the arrow, being silver in color, was impossible to see through the thick snowfall. Orion miscalculated his swing, and the arrow lodged itself deep in his shoulder.

Orion growled in anger and clutched his wound. His dark eyes narrowed on Artemis. "You will pay for that, _goddess_."

Artemis fired another arrow, and this time the hunters followed suit. Orion, not making the same mistake twice, rolled out of the way. His sheer size made the mountains tremble and snow fall from the peaks. The hunters had to scramble out of the way to avoid being crushed by falling ice. Artemis continued to fire arrows at unprecedented speeds, though not as fast as she could if she still had her godly powers. Orion managed to avoid most of the arrows, but a few managed find their way into his flesh. The pure, white snow was splattered with silver ichor in such a way that it resembled a Jackson Pollock.

"I grow tired of this fight," said Orion. "Bring them to the Glacier." With that the giant turned and bounded down the mountain from where he came. Artemis fired one more arrow, but without her godly powers she couldn't make his figure out through the snow and couldn't tell if the arrow had hit or not.

"Milady!" came a cry. Artemis whirled around, another arrow notched. Each of the hunters had a gryphon guarding them, claws to their throats. A figure atop one of the monsters in full Roman armor aimed its bow at Artemis.

"Surrender and come with us peacefully, or each one of your beloved hunters will be killed," said the figure. Artemis scowled with rage. How dare that _boy_ threaten her hunters. Nonetheless, Artemis could not allow any harm to come to her girls, so she lowered her bow. As she did so, she felt a sharp pain in the back of her head and the world grew dark. As she fell she could make out the sight of Roman soldiers standing above her.

[LINEBREAK]

Clarisse waited till Charlie ran down the corridor behind her before throwing a torch at the barrels at the entrance. The barrels ignited and the demigods hurried down the tunnel to avoid being caught up in the blast. As the Greek fire exploded and caved in the entrance to their escape tunnel, Clarisse could not help but shed tears at the thoughts of losing so many men.

"Go on, General," Castor had said to her as they ran to the tunnel. "We will hold them off for as long as possible."

"I can't just abandon my troops!"

Castor smiled at her and saluted. The Greek soldiers around him that were not currently locked in combat followed suit.

He called out to her, "Greece must live to fight another day and you must be there to lead it. It was an honor fighting with you, sir."

Clarisse wanted to scream at him that she would not leave, but Katie and Charlie dragged her away towards the tunnel where Leo and Piper were waiting. As she fled towards the tunnel, kicking and screaming, she watched as Castor and his archers valiantly continued to fight the monster horde. Enceladus swung his mace and killed more soldiers, but his attacks were clumsy, and with each swing he killed many monsters as well. Unfortunately, the monsters did not stay dead.

"We need to hurry," Charlie whispered. In the narrow tunnel, the whisper echoed loudly. Clarisse shook her head as if to rid herself of the guilt that threatened to take over. I had no choice, she tried to reason with herself, but she knew that she should've stayed to help defend the fort. The captain must go down with their ship. So too should a general go down with their army. Clarisse suddenly did not feel fit to be general. She closed her eyes tightly. 'Percy', she prayed, 'I need your help'. She hoped that she'd feel something. Anything. But no feelings of peace or comfort came. She turned and nodded to Charlie and followed him through the tunnel.

The other end of the tunnel came up deep in the woods. Leo and Piper were arguing with Katie about something making Clarisse grimaced. She wasn't ready to deal with bickering. Not now.

"All of you shut up. We need to figure out how to warn Jason and Mathan. Rodriguez is out there most likely laying an ambush," she said. Leo's eyes blazed.

"I want to know what the hell is going on! In the last few days, Piper and I have been enslaved, forced to fight in some battle with monsters that make the Thing look like a puppy, and lost our friend-"

"Who turned out to be a half-goat man," Piper interrupted. Leo nodded.

"Exactly. Someone needs to tell us what's going on," Leo demanded.

Clarisse rubbed her eyes warily.

"I'll take care of that," came a voice from behind her. Clarisse looked up and felt her chest warm up with gratitude to see Malcolm and a rather large group of soldiers emerged from the trees.

Clarisse sheathed her spear and shield and eyed her soldiers. There couldn't have been more than a hundred demigods and only around twenty horses.

"Is this all that's left?" she whispered. Malcolm nodded solemnly.

"This is all I could get through the tunnel in such a short amount of time." He motioned behind him, and the Stoll twins rushed up holding a box in each hand. "We did manage to get our important files and intel out though."

Clarisse nodded with appreciation at Connor and Travis. She turned back to Leo. "Malcolm will explain everything to you two. Right now we do not have much time."

"Our scouts report that Rodriguez's men are waiting on the other side of the woods," Malcolm said.

"Then we need to hurry," said Clarisse. "I just hope we get to them before Jason and his reinforcements do."

[LINEBREAK]

Jason could not describe the pain that came from riding on the back of a centaur. They were fast sure, but the problem was that these centaurs, the Party Ponies they called themselves, seemed to _prance_ rather than run. They were nearing the fort were Clarisse's army was hopefully still holding the Romans back, but in the distance, Jason could see smoke rising from above the trees.

"I have a bad feeling about this," said Mathan who was riding on a centaur beside Jason.

"I'm sure Clarisse's army is holding strong."

"No. I mean _this_." Mathan pointed at the makeshift saddle he was riding on. With each prance the centaur made, the straps on the saddle loosened. Jason rolled his eyes.

"We are getting close," yelled Chiron from ahead of them. "Pick up the pace!"

Incredibly, the Party Ponies seemed to listen to Chiron and picked up the pace. Jason had to press himself tightly to the centaur. Mathan seemed to be struggling, and was holding on to his centaur's shirt for stability. Jason stifled a laugh. That's weird, he thought. This feels almost… normal. He hadn't realized how long it had been since he had really laughed. It was before Percy had died…

He was broken out of his thoughts at the abrupt halt the centaurs made. He and Mathan were flung over the heads of their rides and landed on their backs on the ground. Chiron looked down at them with amusement before looking back up.

"This terrain is not suited for us," he said. Jason groaned as he and Mathan rose to their feet. Indeed, the rest of the way to the fort was dense woods that the centaurs would not be able to get through. At least not easily. Certainly not an entire legion of Party Ponies.

"What do you suggest?" asked Jason. Chiron looked around.

"I'll take the Party Ponies around the forest. The Romans surely won't be expecting an attack on their flank. You and Mathan can make your way through the forest. They won't be able to spot your approach."

Jason did not like the idea of splitting up, but figured it was the best idea they had. He nodded. "Alright. We will meet you in the fort."

Chiron nodded and began shouting out orders to the centaurs. Before they could ride away, Jason called out to him.

"Gods be with you, Chiron."

The old trainer of heroes smiled at him. "And with you."

Jason and Mathan watched the centaurs bound away before turning towards the woods. They were still quite a ways away, and Jason wasn't sure, but he thought he could see fires along the tree line.

"Do you see that?" asked Mathan. Jason nodded.

"Yeah I do. Fires."

"Who do you think is over there?"

Jason shrugged. "I don't know. But we're about to find out."

[LINEBREAK]

Percy's mind was a blur. He knew that he had just spoken with Odin the All-Father, the King of Asgaard. But Percy couldn't remember any of it. Heimdall came up from behind him with a smile on his face. Percy wanted to drive his fist into the man's face.

"What the Hades just happened in there?" he roared. Heimdall just continued to smile. "If you don't stop smiling, I swear that I'll stop it for you."

"Cheer up, Percy. Not many can say that they've spoken to Odin and lived to tell about it." Heimdall chuckled to himself. "Thor pouted in his chambers for a month the last time he was called in for a meeting with Odin."

"I don't even remember what happened in there!"

Heimdall finally stopped smiling and nodded. "Nothing at all?"

Percy thought hard for a moment. All he had were flashes of a one-eyed man and gold. Lots of gold. "No nothing."

"Not surprising. Odin is a rather intimidating figure."

"I'll say," muttered Percy. "But please. What did Odin say?"

"Frost giants have been raiding a nearby world. Odin wants you to bring back the head of their leader and he'll grant you a shard of Yggdrasill."

"Oh, so no biggie. Just take on one of Asgaard's greatest enemies. Yep. Piece of cake."

Heimdall rolled his eyes and pulled out a large satchel. Percy eyed it warily.

"What is that?"

"It's a gift."

Percy hesitantly took the satchel from Heimdall and sat down on a golden bench outside of Odin's palace. He reached inside and felt his hand clasp on something smooth and hard. He pulled it out, surprised at the weight, to find a beautifully engraved golden cuirass. It was identical to the armor he had worn for centuries before he had become a demigod. It was engraved with key battles that Percy himself had taken part in as King of the gods. Percy was speechless.

"That's not all," Heimdall said a smile in his voice.

Percy reached back into the satchel and found a pair of golden boots, bracers, and a helm identical to his original. Then his hand felt a smaller box within the satchel. Percy put the armor on the ground and reached into the bag to pull out the box. When he pulled it out, he found a rather ordinary wooden box. Percy raised an eyebrow at Heimdall, but the gatekeeper merely smiled at him and motioned for him to open it with a nod. Percy slowly opened the box to find a golden watch resting on velvet. He could not believe his eyes.

"How-How did you-?" He couldn't get his words out.

Heimdall laughed heartily. "I made a special trip to Midgard before I fetched you from Erebus."

"This is—I can't thank you enough, Heimdall," Percy said earnestly. "Thank you."

Heimdall patted him on the back and stood up. "Come. Put your armor on and let us get you to your quest."

Percy quickly put his armor on, surprised to find that everything fit perfectly. It was a perfectly balanced set fitting for the god of balance. Percy slipped the watch on his wrist and followed Heimdall to the bifrost. The trip there was much quicker than the trip to the palace had been. Percy was still wrapping his mind around the fact that his quest to return to earth was becoming reality. Now all he needed to do was defeat the leader of the frost giants. Easy right? He certainly hoped so.

When they reached the bifrost, Heimdall patted Percy's shoulder once more.

"Once you've completed your quest, I will open the bifrost and bring you back," said Heimdall. Percy nodded and bowed, not trusting his voice yet. Heimdall smiled and turned towards the gate. Sliding his sword in place, the bifrost opened and Percy felt himself hurtle through time and space. In his entire existence, Percy had traveled through the bifrost exactly twice. It was not an easy feeling to get used to. He knew that he was nearing the end of his journey as he began to slow down. When he finally arrived, he crashed into the ground on one knee. The ground exploded outward, and despite the force, Percy felt no pain. He stood back up and looked around. He had wondered how hard it would be to find the frost giants, but found that he did not need to look far.

The frost giants closed in on him from all sides, clubs of pure ice in their hands. One giant wearing a crown of icicles stepped forward.

"Who are you?" asked the giant. Unlike the giants of earth, these giants were intelligent. Percy reached for his watch.

"I am-" he hesitated for a moment, unsure which name to go by, "I am Gabriel of Midgard, Olympian god of balance. I have been sent by Odin to rid this world of your evils."

For some reason, that had sounded much more badass in his head. The leader of the giants bellowed out some sort of battle cry, and the giants charged towards Percy. Percy unsheathed Isorropia and brought out his shield. The first giant to reach him swung its club from the right side. Percy held up his shield to block the strike, stunning the giant who had clearly not expected Percy to be able to withstand the force of its attack. Percy wasted no time in driving his sword through the giant's gut. The other giants did not follow the first's mistakes and attacked all at once.

Percy closed his eyes, and with more determination than he had used in years, fired his godly power out towards the giants. The monsters, losing their balance, stumbled over their feet. Even the giants' leader tripped and landed at Percy's feet. Percy, unwilling to show any mercy, drove his sword through the leader's back. The rest of the giants struggled to their feet, unsure how to proceed with their leader now dead. Percy twisted his body around and began to stab, thrust, and slash his way through the giants' ranks. Percy felt oddly satisfied.

Just as the number of giants dwindled, the ground began to rumble. Percy flicked his wrist, and lopped the head off another giant before standing his ground to face the next challenge. The rumbling grew louder, and the tremors became stronger.

"Well shit," mumbled Percy. A massive monster that looked like a cross between Cerberus and the Sarlaac from Star Wars erupted from the ground and began racing towards Percy. Percy thrust his hands out, but his ability to affect the monster's balance was nulled by the monster's momentum. Percy waited till the monster got closer, then leaped out of the way using its momentum against it. The Cerbelaac skidded to a halt, and attempted to halt , but couldn't turn around fast enough. Percy rushed forward and leapt onto the monster's back. It tried valiantly to buck him off, but Percy drove his sword between its ribs. The monster roared in pain as Percy began to drive his sword further and further into its flesh. Blood poured out and covered Percy's golden armor in blue.

"Die you miserable filth!" Percy bellowed. As if answering his wish, the monster collapsed to the ground, unable to garner enough strength to continue struggling. Percy jumped off.

"That was… interesting." He frowned at the blood covering him. It smelled bad. Percy took a deep breath and turned to the remainder of the giants that hadn't been killed yet. They eyed Percy warily before dropping their clubs and scurrying off into the distance. Percy made no move to go after them. They were defeated and if they refused to take up arms it wasn't for him to track them down. He walked over to the body of the leader, and with a strong downward strike, took the giant's head off. Percy looked up and waved his sword. "Yoohoo! I'm done!"

The bifrost opened up immediately, and Percy felt himself being sucked up into the vacuum. A minute later he was laying sprawled on the ground in front of a smirking Heimdall.

"You ever stop smiling?" asked Percy. Heimdall shook his head.

"Where's the fun in that?"

Percy grumbled to himself as he stood back up. He made to clean himself off a bit, but found that all the blood from the giants and the Cerbelaac was gone.

"It was the least I could do," said Heimdall with another smile. Percy nodded his thanks and smiled back.

"Thank you, Heimdall."

Heimdall nodded. "Come, my friend. Let us leave this gate."

Percy followed Heimdall out of the gate chamber only to find himself back in Erebus' study room. He looked around confused. Erebus stood up from his seat and walked up to them.

"Why are we here?" asked Percy. "I need to get the shard of Yggdrasill from Odin!"

Heimdall shook his head and pulled out a small shard from the pouch around his waist.

"We never doubted you, Percy. We had tremendous faith that you'd be able to take care of the frost giants," he said, handing the shard to Percy. Percy smiled brightly at his friend. He was glad he wouldn't have to meet with Odin again. He handed Heimdall the head of the frost giant and Heimdall turned back to the gate.

"I do hope we meet again soon, Percy. I wish you all the luck in the world. May you regain your soul and crush your enemies into the ground."

Percy clasped arms with his friend. "Go in peace, Heimdall. I'll visit you once this is all over."

Heimdall nodded, and with a bow towards Erebus, left through the bifrost for Asgaard. Once he had left, Percy turned back towards Erebus and held the shard out to him.

"How was your time in Asgaard, Percy?" asked Erebus. Percy shrugged.

"Interesting to say the least."

Erebus looked at Percy's armor. "I'll say."

Erebus took the shard from Percy and walked over to the hearth that was mounted in the wall. He tossed the shard into the hearth, and instantly a fire began to blaze. Percy's jaw dropped. All that work only for Erebus to use the shard as firewood. Erebus turned back towards Percy and smiled.

"Trust me, this fire serves a purpose," he said. Percy furrowed his brow.

"If you say so," Percy said slowly. "Now about our deal…"

Erebus held up a hand and walked back to him. "A deal is a deal, and you kept your side of the bargain. Here. You've earned this."

Erebus grabbed Percy's hand and placed a small vial in his palm. Percy looked at it closely. It looked like a normal vial. It wasn't glowing silver or anything.

"How will I find the rest of the vials?" Percy asked. Erebus motioned for Percy to join him by the fire.

"Do you know who I am?" he asked.

Was this a trick question? "You're Erebus. Primordial god of darkness."

Erebus nodded. "Exactly. Why then would I light a fire?"

Percy shrugged.

"Because," Erebus said, "this shard of Yggdrasill is the one thing that will burn in my presence. My wife, Nyx, is Night itself, and many eons ago we had two children."

"Aether and Hemera," interrupted Percy. Erebus glared at him. Percy smiled cheekily.

"Yes. My domain prevents me from ever experiencing the domains of my children. I miss them. This shard is the only thing that allows me to see light and experience even a flicker of the day," continued Erebus. "You've done me a wonderful service, Percy. And for that I will repay you. The tome you read states that you must take a potion of the ichor of eight gatekeepers."

"Yes…" Percy wasn't sure where Erebus was going with this.

"Well that's not entirely the truth. Taking a potion containing all the ichors _will_ heal your soul at once, but there is a way to heal your soul piece by piece."

Percy rolled his eyes. "Let me guess: if I drink one ichor at a time it'll heal a piece of my soul?"

Erebus whacked Percy on the back of the head. "Do not sass me. Yes. If you take this vial now a part of your soul will be returned to you."

Percy frowned. "So what? How will that help me?"

"Take it and find out," Erebus said with a sly grin. Percy, fearing that Erebus would whack him again or worse, uncorked the vial.

"You sure about this?" Percy asked. Erebus nodded. Percy sighed and threw the vial back. The ichor burned his throat and burned through his body. The fire from the hearth exploded, the flames reaching out towards Percy. Before he could scream in surprise, the fire engulfed him and he once again felt himself plummeting.

Unlike his trip through the bifrost, Percy never slowed down. Everything was dark and he could not see what he was falling towards. Sooner than he had expected, Percy crashed into the ground. His armor absorbed most of the impact, but he still felt pain course through his body.

"Erebus, what the hell just happened?" called out Percy as he rose to his feet albeit painfully. There was no response. Only darkness. Percy turned around in all directions but could not see anything. As he continued to turn around in a circle, he noticed a small orange glow coming from behind what looked like a tree. Percy unsheathed Isorropia and braced himself for whatever danger was coming. The glow grew brighter until Percy could see and hear rustling in the trees.

"Who's there?" Percy asked. He was impressed that his voice was so confident. He certainly didn't feel confident. He was exhausted and did not want to fight another battle. The rustling grew louder, and nine figures emerged from behind the trees. The glare from torch in the first figure's hand momentarily blinded Percy and he covered his eyes with his left arm.

"Well, well, well," said the figure. The voice was oddly familiar. "Look who it is."

"Who are you?" Percy asked again. The figure clutched his chest.

"You don't remember your old friend?" asked the voice with a gasp.

Percy lowered his arm, but did not sheath his sword. He still could not make out the figure's face, but he moved closer. He didn't lower his sword. When he was within swords reach of the figure, Percy gasped and nearly dropped Isorropia.

"How is this possible? How am I _here_? How are _you_ here?" asked Percy utterly confused. He shook his head and sheathed his sword. "Oh who cares, I'm just so glad."

The figure laughed and hugged Percy tightly. "I've missed you Percy. It's been too long."

"I agree. I think we've got a lot to catch up on, Nico," Percy said with a wide smile.

 **A/N: I am so very sorry this chapter took so long. I wrote this chapter several times and had to scrap it each time. I just wasn't happy with it. I have an (in my opinion) awesome plan for this story and I had to take time to do some extra research for it. On top of that, school and work have bogged me down. I really do hope you guys enjoy this chapter. It's the longest chapter I've written in a very long time. Definitely the longest chapter of BA:CW. As for the poll that's been going on for a while: you'll have to wait and see who survives and who, unfortunately, does not.**

 **Remember to favorite, follow, and especially REVIEW. I won't lie: the last few chapters have not gotten many reviews and that's been quite a bummer. Your reviews let me know what I'm doing right and what you guys would like to see happen. With that said thank you all who have stayed with me this long. I have NOT abandoned this story and I promise that I never will. Now that I've got a plot that I'm very happy with, I hope to get more chapters out frequently. Until next time!**


	10. Chapter 9

Jason struggled to open his eyes. Everything hurt. He felt a sharp jab on his shoulder. He grimaced only to croak out with pain from the soreness of his muscles. Light trickled into his retina through the cracked opening of his eyelids. Two shadows hovered over him, one pointing a smaller, brighter light into his eyes.

"Jason," said the figure, "are you still with us?"

Jason groaned and tried to swat the obtrusive light out of his eye only to hiss in pain.

"He's fine. I think he has a concussion is all."

"What happened?"

"We were ambushed. Rodriguez's men came out of the woods and trapped us. If it hadn't of been for you and your men, we wouldn't have survived. I think Jason hit his head trying to avoid getting stomped on by a fleeing horse."

Flashes of war shot through Jason's mind. For a second he thought he could still smell the stale blood, burnt flesh and ash from the battle. He definitely remembered seeing a horse running towards him, but the more he thought about it the more it hurt.

"I'm still sorry, Clarisse."

Jason heard a soft grunt.

"It was my fault. I was only thinking about leading them away from the enemy that I lost my bearings."

"You couldn't have known they were waiting for you to leave the group."

"I still should've!"

The shout rang through Jason's ears and he gasped in pain. He felt a cool cloth being placed on his forehead.

"Take it easy, Jason. We're safe…for now."

"What…happened?" asked Jason. He could barely speak.

"We'll talk about it when you've rested some more. Just get some sleep. Mathan will take the first watch."

Jason thought he heard Mathan grumble something, but he wasn't sure. He tried to stay awake, but before he knew it he was back asleep. He immediately regretted it. His dreams were hazy, but he could see the battle clearly. He saw Mathan standing over him, a large shield in his hands as he defended the two of them from an onslaught of arrows and spears. He heard a loud war cry off in the distance and could just barely see another army coming towards the one before them. The rest of his dream was a blur. He heard screaming; he felt pain. Once or twice he thought he could see ghosts around him, but as quick as they were there, they were gone.

"Here, Jason, eat this," said Mathan. Jason woke with a start. Mathan applied a thick paste onto his lips, and Jason, with minimal effort, licked the paste. He instantly felt better. His brain did not feel as clouded, and his muscles were not as sore.

"I guess you were right, Mathan," said Clarisse.

"See? I told you that this would clear a concussion. If it works on gods it should work on demigods."

"I already said you were right, you don't need to rub it in!"

Jason couldn't help but smirk. He forced himself to lift his head up and open his eyes. Mathan and Clarisse both looked at him with worry. Jason noticed that Clarisse's face was ridden with guilt and grief.

"What happened?" Jason asked.

"We were…ambushed," Clarisse muttered, avoiding his eyes. "The fort had been completely overridden by monsters, and we were forced to escape through a tunnel. When we made it out, I sent a few scouts ahead but they never returned. My commanders…my commanders wanted me to send out a patrol, but I knew that a patrol would be easily spotted. I decided that as general it was my duty to make up for the lives that had been lost in the fort, so I went ahead myself."

She stopped and rubbed at her face furiously before she continued. "I went in the wrong direction. I thought that Rodriguez and his men would be to the east where they were supposed to be retrieving resources. Instead they came from the west. I'm not sure how. I assume they wrapped around the fort behind the cover of the monster army and attacked our backs once we escaped from the tunnel. When I returned to my men, all of them were dead."

Clarisse broke down in tears before turning her back and heading off to grieve. Mathan watched her sullenly before turning back to Jason.

"I saw her coming, and called her out," Mathan whispered. "There were several people that survived, but their injuries were too severe. We had to get out of there before the monsters in the fort realized we were there. Between the both of us we managed to drag your sorry ass out."

Jason looked around but all he could see was the light coming from a fire and Mathan's flashlight. "Where are we exactly?"

"A few miles from Alaska I think," Mathan said. "When we were trying to escape the monsters a few must have spotted us. They chased us and we weren't able to make it back east to New York or even Chicago. They must have been planning this for months."

"How have they not caught up to us yet?"

Mathan shrugged. "I think once we made it to Canada they just let us go."

"Then why didn't we try and go east towards New York through Canada? Why Alaska?"

"Because Thalia messaged me about a month ago." Clarisse walked back over to them and sat down on the other side of Mathan. "She said Artemis was leading them to Alaska in the event that the Romans managed to capture one of the gods."

"Do you think they have?" asked Jason. Clarisse nodded.

"Not Hera or anybody else we thought of."

Mathan cocked his head. "Then who?"

"I think they have two."

" _Two?_ " asked Jason incredulously.

Clarisse nodded. "Iris for sure and I think possibly Thanatos."

"Iris? How do you capture the goddess of the rainbow?" Mathan wondered aloud.

"Not sure, but we can't trust any IM messages," said Clarisse. She noticed Jason lay his head back down and looked at Mathan. "We need to let him rest. As soon as he is well we need to make our way to Alaska."

Mathan nodded, and with one last look at his friend he followed Clarisse to the other side of the fire. They sat down together on the ground next to a pot of beans. Mathan picked it up and offered some to Clarisse who hesitated at first but ate some nonetheless.

"I heard something," she said softly as she gazed into the fire. Mathan looked up from the pot of beans.

"What's that?"

"I heard…I heard Percy."

Mathan nodded. "I hear him all the time too. I don't think I've had a single night since…well since _it_ happened where I don't hear him screaming in pain fighting against Kronos."

"No," Clarisse shook her head. "Not in my dreams. I heard him in my mind during the battle. At first I wasn't sure if it was my imagination, but then he actually began speaking to me. He warned me that the Romans were on our tail the day before the attack on the fort."

Mathan eyed her in awe before looking back up at the sky. "Percy really spoke to you? How can you be sure it wasn't one of Gaea's minions?"

"Why would Gaea warn me of her own attack?"

"I-I don't know. It's just that…it just seems so crazy! We all saw his body."

"Exactly. That was his body," Clarisse said. "His soul is still somewhere out there. He's still watching out for us."

Mathan nodded, accepting her reasoning. He continued to look up, struggling to find Percy's constellation.

"Do you know where his constellation is?" he asked after a few minutes of silence. Clarisse frowned and followed his gaze. She looked around for a few minutes before giving up.

"It's not up there."

"How do you know?"

"You see that star?" she asked, pointing at a rather bright star. Mathan nodded. "That's part of The Big Dipper. Percy's constellation is supposed to be right next to it, but it's not."

"That can't be a good sign," Mathan murmured. Clarisse grunted in agreement. "You think something happened to him?"

"I-"

"What happened to who?"

Both of them jumped up startled only to relax when they saw it was Jason.

"You should be resting," said Mathan. Jason shrugged and hauled himself up to a sitting position.

"You two need to learn how to whisper better." He smirked when they both blushed. At least he thought they were blushing. It was hard to tell with the firelight illuminating their faces in oranges and reds. "So what are you two talking about?"

"Clarisse says Percy has been talking to her," Mathan said. Clarisse elbowed him but the son of Vulcan just smirked unfazed. Clarisse glared at him before turning back to Jason.

"It's true. Just before the battle at the fort, Percy spoke to me warning me that the Romans were getting close."

"You're sure that it was Percy?" Jason asked. Clarisse just nodded.

"His constellation is missing too."

Jason looked up before furrowing his brow in confusion. "What does that mean? I doubt Artemis created a temporary constellation."

"I'm not sure," Clarisse said. "I have no idea what it means. Nothing bad I hope."

Jason nodded. "I have some questions for you two."

Mathan nodded at him to go ahead and ask.

"How did we make it here so quick? Last thing I really remember was staring down a horse."

"You blacked out," Mathan said simply. "The horse hit you and you were knocked out cold."

"We've been carrying you for about two weeks now," Clarisse continued. Jason's eyes bugged out.

"Two weeks?!" he hissed and clutched his side. His ribs were still in pain.

"Easy there." Mathan hurried over to Jason's side. "Yes. It's been two weeks."

"What about the fort? What about Chiron?"

"I don't know. We haven't heard from anybody since."

Jason groaned and allowed Mathan to ease him back down to the ground.

"Tomorrow we'll head into town and get some supplies before we go into Alaska. You'll need some fresh bandages."

Jason could only nod. He was too exhausted. Soon he was fast asleep without any dreams.

[LINEBREAK]

"So what exactly are we looking for?" asked Jason. He had one arm over Mathan's shoulder and was being helped into a small, local grocery store.

"We need more canned food, some bandages, and socks," said Clarisse. She'd already told her 'fearless' leader four times what they were going to do. Jason smirked at Mathan who rolled his eyes. Jason couldn't help but be cheeky.

Clarisse noticed his smirk and scowled. "You want to walk on your own?"

Jason shook his head furiously. "No, ma'am."

Clarisse nodded triumphantly and turned to the clerk. She handed over a few Canadian bills, and as she turned to leave, something caught her eye. She hurried over to the rack of pamphlets by the door and returned to the clerk.

"What is this place?" she asked pointing at the pamphlet in question.

"It's a cave not too far from here."

"How do we get there?"

The clerk eyed the three of them as if scrutinizing them. "You'll need to head north about a day or so. You'll come to a dense forest and from there it should only be about two hours northwest. You can't miss it. It's just under a sharp cliff."

Clarisse smiled gratefully and returned to the Romans before she led them outside into the cold.

"What was that about?" asked Jason. Clarisse handed him the pamphlet. His eyes widened in surprise as he read it.

"What is it?" asked Mathan trying to read it at an odd angle. Jason folded it up and placed it in his coat pocket.

"We should head there now."

"Head where?" asked Mathan again.

"You sure you can make it? It'll be a few days from here."

"What will be a few days from here?" Mathan was beginning to grow irritated.

"I'm sure. The sooner we can head over there the better."

"Where?" asked Mathan furiously. A small flame appeared in each eye. Clarisse blinked in surprise at the show of power.

"Why to Souffle Finale de L'Homme of course."

"What the hell is that?" asked Mathan.

"It's French for 'man's final breath,'" answered Jason.

Mathan eyed him confused. "Since when do you know French?"

"It's important for any Praetor to know all of the Latin based languages. I can read French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, and Romanian. I just can't really speak any of them."

"And what about you, Clarisse? How do you know French?" asked Mathan inquisitively.

Clarisse rolled her eyes and pointed at the pamphlet. "I don't. It gives the English translation right there."

Mathan blushed and Jason snickered. "Oh alright shut up. Let's just get going. You two can make fun of me later."

"Oh, we will," said Clarisse with a smirk. "You can count on it."

The three of them laughed as they headed north. It felt good to laugh again. It had been too long. The last war had hit them hard and this war with Rome and Gaea was especially difficult. Even more so for Mathan and Jason who were being forced to fight their brothers and sisters-in-arms.

They walked for hours until the sun began to set. Setting up camp was easy. Finding dry wood to make a fire was not. Eventually, they did manage to get enough wood to start a fire. Jason, naturally, was the first to fall asleep. Mathan opted to take first watch once more. When he saw that both Jason and Clarisse were asleep, he took out his pouch. Inside he kept pieces of scrap metal and other assorted trinkets. It helped calm his mind when he was working on different things.

His life was in complete turmoil; of that he was sure. Only a little over a year ago, Mathan had been a Centurion in the Legion. Now, he was a Roman living and fighting amongst Greek warriors. The sad thing was that Mathan wouldn't have it any other way. Fighting with the Greeks had opened his eyes to a world beyond that of the military. In New Rome he had been forced to live every single day as a soldier. Sure he had days off where he could spend it any way he pleased, but beyond those few days he was little more than a soldier. He hadn't minded it until he arrived at Camp Half-Blood and spent time with his half-siblings.

The Hephaestus cabin at Camp was a sight to behold. Mathan had been in awe the first time he had joined his half-siblings there. They had showed him around the Camp: the climbing wall, the forest, Zeus' Fist, the beach. It was all perfect. But now he was being forced to fight against those he had once called family. And he wasn't even sure why. 'No,' Mathan thought. He knew why. The Romans had aligned themselves with Gaea. But he was certain they wouldn't have done so unless Lupa were either imprisoned or dead. The wolf goddess would never side against Olympus. Against her father.

Learning that Percy, or rather Gabriel, was Lupa's father had been a complete shock. Jason and Mathan had talked endlessly about it. Something had happened between the two that caused a split, but neither of them knew what had happened.

"What are you working on?"

Mathan nearly dropped what he was holding.

"Relax," said Clarisse as she sat up. Mathan eyed her for a moment before returning to his work.

"What are you working on?" she repeated. He looked down at his hands. He wasn't sure what he was working on. He never did. He only did what came to him.

"Not sure yet. Just passing the time."

Clarisse watched his face for a moment. "How are you holding up?"

Mathan stopped and hesitated before sighing. Clarisse nodded sadly. "That's what I thought."

"I just…I don't know how to bring it up."

"You don't need to, you know."

"But I do. He has the right to know."

Clarisse placed her hand on his shoulder supportively. "You can't keep blaming yourself."

"Why the hell not? If it weren't for me, he wouldn't be in this mess."

"It wasn't your fault. You've told me what happened. Nobody will blame you. He won't blame you."

Mathan looked at her. "How can you be so sure?"

"You were in battle. He did what he had to."

"But he shouldn't have. It was supposed to be me."

Clarisse hit him in the shoulder. Not hard enough to really hurt him, not that Mathan really ever felt much pain, but just enough to show him she was serious. "Don't talk like that. There are no 'what if's' no 'should have's.' It's in the past. Learn from your mistake."

Mathan nodded but remained silent. After a moment he looked back up at her. "Will you tell him for me?"

"No," she laughed softly. "That's your job."

"Figures," he grumbled.

"You can tell him later. Whenever it feels right."

"So…never?"

Clarisse hit him again a bit softer.

"Yeah, I didn't think so."

"You go ahead and get some rest, Math. I'll take watch now."

Mathan narrowed his eyes. "Math?"

Clarisse smiled and did not waver under his glare. "Have a problem with that?"

"No. It's just weird. I hate math."

Clarisse laughed and soon Mathan joined her. When they calmed down, Mathan shook his head.

"It's alright. I'm not tired. I'll stay up."

Clarisse eyed him for a moment, wondering if she should or shouldn't force him to get some rest. Eventually she gave in. She turned back to her sleeping bag, but paused. "Mind if I stay up with you? Keep you company?"

Mathan looked surprised but nodded. "I'd like that."

[LINEBREAK]

Reyna coughed and wheezed as her chest tightened. Her head was pounding and she knew that something was wrong. She stumbled to her quarters and shut the door firmly behind her. Her throat was parched and her voice hoarse. She ran to the small fridge that she was privileged enough to have and grabbed one of the bottles of water she had. She broke the seal and took a mighty gulp.

There was a knock at the door. She narrowed her eyes and went over to it.

"Who is it?" she called out.

"Octavian."

Reyna frowned and hesitantly opened the door. "What do you want?"

The scrawny kid smiled faux innocently.

"Praetor, the Dark Mother missed you at our last conference."

"I wasn't feeling well," Reyna said curtly. Octavian nodded.

"I know, I know." He held out a glass of water. "I brought you some water. Mother's order."

Reyna eyed it. Her suspicions were slowly being confirmed. She shook her head. "No thank you. I already drank some water. My throat is feeling better. Thank you."

Before Octavian could respond, Reyna slammed the door in his face. She turned around and slumped against the door. It was all making sense. It was the water. When Reyna and the Romans had defeated the Titans over a year ago, Gaea had been waiting. The Titans had already been doing her bidding and when Reyna had arrived, they'd been tricked into drinking water as they negotiated their terms for surrender. Since that day Reyna and the Romans had done everything Gaea had asked. Reyna even heard Gaea in her mind. But it only happened when she drank the water.

Reyna hurried over to her window after locking the door and gazed out. In the center of Rebellionis was a large fountain. She watched as slaves carried buckets of it throughout the city. That's where it was coming from. Gaea had given them that fountain. Somehow, she was controlling all of Rome through that one fountain. Reyna cursed to herself. The Romans that were out battling the Greeks were being supplied with water from Gaea herself. But Reyna had a plan. If she could only destroy that fountain, the supply of water to everybody else would go away.

She looked back at her water bottle. It had only taken a few hours before Gaea's influence faded away. Reyna steeled her nerves. If she was going to save Rome, she'd need to rescue Lupa first. That meant facing her mentor after all she had done to her.

Reyna grabbed her dagger and her keys, and left her apartment to the jail where Lupa was being kept. The guards nodded at her, and Reyna forced herself to play the part of Gaea's loyal supporter. It was rather difficult as her head was still throbbing. She made it out of the apartment building easily and made her way across the courtyard to the jail.

As she walked an old slave collapsed under the weight of two buckets of water. Frank Zhang, her right hand man, barked an order, and another centurion hurried over and whipped the old man until he lay completely still. Reyna felt like throwing up, but doing so would give her away. Frank nodded at her with a smile, and Reyna forced a smile back.

"Praetor," he said in acknowledgement. "We're up to twenty slaves."

She almost asked what he meant but stopped. Twenty dead. That's what he meant. She nodded. "Very good."

The words tasted like bile.

The guards to the jail stepped aside as she entered, and she made her way down the poorly lit hallway. The jail was a large building, but the majority of it was underground. The fourth door on the right was the stairwell, and as she made her way down she thought of what to say. 'Hello, Lupa. How've you been?' Reyna shook her head. This wouldn't be easy.

Another guard stood at the bottom of the steps. He looked ready to order Reyna to leave before he recognized her. Reyna waved him away, and the guard hastily hurried up the steps. The only cell on this floor was at the far end of the hallway, and it had only one occupant. Reyna slowly walked up to the cell and peered in. She flinched.

Lupa was chained to the back wall, her clothes a complete mess and ichor trickling down her face. Reyna put a hand on the cell bars, and Lupa looked up.

"Come to 'request' my allegiance?" Lupa croaked out. Reyna felt tears coming to her eyes, but forced them away.

"N-no. Not this time," she said. Lupa nodded slowly.

"Ah. I've been waiting for this day."

Reyna shook her head and unlocked the cell. Lupa braced herself for what she knew was the end. When Reyna stepped closer, the wolf goddess stared back at her determined not to show any fear. However, when Reyna unlocked her shackles, Lupa collapsed to the ground in confusion.

"W-what are you doing?"

Reyna bent down and looked behind her back to make sure no one was around.

"I need your help."

"I've told you before I will not help you!"

"Not with that," Reyna said. She closed her eyes. "I was tricked. When we stormed Mount Othrys we all drank water while we negotiated the terms of surrender. What we didn't realize was that the water was from Gaea herself. Whenever we drink it she gains control over us."

Lupa cocked her head with confusion. "And since then?"

"Gaea produced a fountain in the middle of the city. Everyone in the Legion drinks from it. Here in the city, and out there on the battlefield."

Lupa narrowed her eyes.

"The battlefield?"

Reyna's eyes widened. "You don't know? We're currently at war with Olympus and Greece."

Lupa closed her eyes tightly. "How do I know you're not still under Gaea's control?"

"I swear on the River Styx that I am no longer under Gaea's control, and that I have no intention to harm you."

Thunder boomed in the distance, and Lupa waited. When nothing happened she let out a breath and looked up. "What do you need my help with?"

"We're going to take New Rome back. We're going to stand up to Gaea. We're going to blow up her damned fountain, and I need your help to do it."

 **A/N: I'm back everyone! You miss me? I miss you guys. Sorry this chapter took so long. I wrote it and rewrote it several times before deciding on keeping this one. I realize it's mostly a filler chapter, but it is a very important filler chapter. Hope you all enjoyed it! Also, please give a warm welcome to a new member of my beta team: distorted-me. She's terrific and both she and Ensis96 have been a tremendous help in making this story flow well.**

 **As always thank you to everyone who has favorited/followed/and reviewed this story! I'd really like to get more reviews though. More reviews gives me more motivation to write. Less reviews means less motivation so please if you enjoy this story and want to see it continue quicker please review. The last few chapters have only gotten two-three reviews each which is a little disheartening.**

 **In regards to the poll: Chiron was the overwhelming favorite to survive the next few chapters. Until next time!**


	11. Chapter 10

Clarisse was cold—far colder than she was accustomed to. Living in New York meant she was used to frigid winters, but this was much worse. She looked around trying to figure out where she was. All she could see was ice and more ice. The sky above her was dark, but her breath was taken away as she stared up into the Milky Way unhindered by light pollution.

The sound of screams tore her concentration from the sky, and Clarisse turned sharply towards the noise. Curious, she moved towards the source of the sound. She reached for her spear only to panic when she found it wasn't there. She patted herself down to find that she had none of her gear. That wasn't normal. Where was Jason? Where was Mathan? Turning a full 360 degrees showed that she was utterly alone. Then it hit her. She was dreaming.

Clarisse had never experienced a demigod dream before. She'd be excited if it weren't for the screaming that became more prevalent as the wind picked up. Knowing that nothing would truly happen to her in a dream, she rushed towards the source. The screams grew louder, and before too long she saw a faint orange glow from between two ice rifts. Clarisse slid down the ice towards the entrance of the crevice. She was grateful that it was a dream otherwise she was certain she'd of slipped and broken her neck or some other terrible thing.

From deep within the crevice, the screams grew louder, and Clarisse heard the horrifying laughter of several monsters. Fighting the urge to flee and bring back help, Clarisse pushed forward into the opening. The cold wind ceased as she passed the threshold of the crevice. For that she was grateful. She hoped that just because she could feel the cold didn't mean she could be killed by whatever it was in front of her.

A single, screeching scream tore through the crevice ripping through Clarisse's mind. She screamed and was glad that her dream self was incapable of making noise. Realizing time was running out, Clarisse charged forward knowing that nothing would happen to her. The crevice widened enough for her to run without her shoulders scraping the ice walls. She ran towards the screams twisting and winding through the jagged tunnel. Eventually she came upon the cave in the center of the crevice, and Clarisse felt her blood grow cold. If that was even possible in a dream. Below her at the bottom of the cave were two cages. In one was some black, hooded figure with wings. It reminded Clarisse of the pictures of the grim reaper from the horror movies her siblings were fond of watching. She had never been too interested in them herself. In the other cage, however, were several smaller figures in tattered, silver winter gear.

Clarisse gasped as she realized it was the hunters that were imprisoned before her. She watched in horror as the monsters that surrounded the cages slammed their clubs consistently on the cages. The younger hunters shrieked, and the older ones shivered in fear. The hunters were fearless, Clarisse knew. If they were this terrified then something positively horrific must have happened. Then she saw what exactly was terrifying them all. Just below the small cliff she was standing on was a wooden post with a small girl tied to it. The girl had auburn hair, and her winter gear was soaked in crimson as a rather large and imposing figure hit her with a whip. With each smack the girl cried out in pain, and each of the hunters screamed in fear. Clarisse gasped once more. The girl was Lady Artemis herself.

[LINBREAK]

 _Mathan grimaced as the trees whipped back and hit him in the face as he followed Jason. The smoke from beyond the tree line was beginning to thicken in the air, and it was making his lungs constrict and fight for breathable air. Mathan continued to follow Jason further and further. The trees eased up on them as they ran and with the increased space came the sound of steel clashing against steel and the screams of battle. Ahead of him Jason pulled out his gladius, and Mathan followed suit brandishing his hammers._

 _They continued running into the smoke until they came upon the battle itself. Mathan was utterly confused by what was going on, and he turned to Jason for help. Jason looked back with the same look of confusion. Greeks were fighting Greeks. A small contingent of Greek hoplites formed a circled phalanx formation as they were surrounded by Greek cavalry. The cavalry charged forward and managed to break up the ranks of the hoplites. Everything grew chaotic then. The hoplites scattered and there was no one in command as far as Mathan could see. The cavalry attempted to round up the remaining hoplites when Mathan saw Jason leap into action. A cavalry officer charged past them, and Jason slashed the rider's side knocking him off of his horse and onto the ground._

 _Jason pulled him away from the battle and towards the treeline where he threw the officer against a tree._

 _"What is going on here?" he growled out. Mathan tried to speak up to yell at the officer, but found that he could not speak. The officer hissed at Jason._

 _"The Dark Mother will rise again," he growled and his eyes flashed a sickly green before he faded away. Mathan realized with horror that he was dreaming. Jason seemed unfazed by the officer's disappearance. He looked at Mathan, nodded, and rushed into battle. Mathan felt his dream body growl in annoyance and followed Jason into the fray._

 _Mathan ducked and rolled as a horse charged past him. The cavalry officer reared back the horse and turned towards Mathan. Mathan dropped into his stance and waited as the officer came at him. The officer leveled his spear at Mathan and just before he could be impaled, Mathan spun out of the way. The sound of flesh tearing and a cry of shock and pain echoed through Mathan's mind._

 _Mathan whirled around to see what happened and dropped to his knees in terror. Everything around him faded to nothing. All that was left was the Greek cavalry officer with his spear impaled into Jason's back. Mathan watched with anguish as his best friend collapsed in a puddle of blood. The officer faded away with everything else leaving Mathan alone with Jason's body._

 _"Mathan," whispered Jason. "Mathan…"_

 _"Mathan…"_

"Mathan!"

Mathan jumped and rolled out of the way bringing one of his hammers up to defend himself. Above him Jason stood with a wide grin.

"Calm down, hot head," Jason said. Mathan glared at him but put his hammer away and sat down. He rubbed his eyes wearily.

"What time is it?" he asked.

Jason looked around and shrugged. "Not sure. A little after dawn…I made some breakfast."

"When did you learn to cook?"

Jason blushed. "Never. It's one of those instant meal things."

Mathan laughed and moved over to the fire where Jason had put the instant meals in a bowl. He scooped a large spoonful of what was supposed to be mashed potatoes into his own bowl and sat down on his sleeping bag. He took a bite of the food and gagged. Jason was busy scarfing down his own bowl to notice. Mathan spat out the mush and tossed the rest into the woods. You weren't supposed to leave food out for wild animals to get to, but Mathan was pretty sure that not even wild animals would want that disgrace to fine dining. He set his bowl down next to the fire and reached for his canteen when he heard a soft moan.

Mathan looked over at where Clarisse was still sleeping in her bag. She was tossing and turning obviously having a terrible dream. Mathan reached a hand out to try and wake her but was met with a vicious slap on the wrist from the sleeping girl. He hissed in pain and glared at her but left her in peace. Jason tried to stifle a laugh but it came out as a snort.

"Shut up," Mathan grumbled. Jason wiped his eyes and stood back up slowly.

"Easy," Mathan said. "You are still recovering. You can't move too quickly."

"What happened? You never told me."

Mathan looked down at his hands. "I-I…"

"We have to go!" shouted Clarisse interrupting him. Mathan sighed in relief at not having to answer Jason just yet. Then her words hit.

"Why? What's happened?" asked Jason. Clarisse scrambled to her feet and began to stuff all of her things into her pack.

"I had a dream," she said.

"Join the club," grumbled Mathan too low for her to hear.

"The hunters are in danger," she continued. "We need to hurry up and get to that cave. Hopefully this prophecy of yours."

Mathan turned to Jason. "Sorry about telling her the prophecy. I didn't think she'd be so bossy about it."

Jason rolled his eyes.

"Get your things!" roared Clarisse. Both boys jumped in fright and hurried to pack their things. Mathan helped Jason out with his so that he wouldn't be straining his back and shoulder too much. When everyone was ready, Mathan put one of Jason's arms over his shoulder and followed Clarisse further into the woods.

Clarisse turned back with an exasperated expression. "Hurry up! We only have two hours till we reach the cave."

"How are you holding up?" asked Mathan to his friend. Jason huffed as he struggled to keep up.

"Alright," he muttered. "Just keep going we need to finish this prophecy."

Mathan nodded in agreement and helped Jason along. They continued to walk at a brisk pace pausing only to hack bushes and branches out of the way. Clarisse maintained a fairly large distance ahead of them, scouting out for possible threats, though she continued to talk with them revealing the contents of her demigod dream.

Canada's freezing cold weather chilled all three of them to the bone, and Mathan stopped their walking for a minute to remove three heating pads from his pack. Clarisse and Jason smiled gratefully and placed the heating pads under the jackets, wedging them between the clothing and their backs. The snow on the ground made the trek difficult, but in two hours they soon came to a large and imposing rock formation.

"Man's final breath," whispered Clarisse. Mathan and Jason moved to stand beside her both looking equally awed by the looming cliff.

Clarisse turned to look at them. "What was the prophecy again?"

" _Three heroes in black,_

 _Shall aid a soul on its journey back._

 _They'll flee, betrayed and broken,_

 _To a land that time has forgotten._

 _And beneath man's final breath,_

 _Find their salvation or their death,_ " said Jason.

"I'm assuming all of the lines of the prophecy have been fulfilled except for the last?" asked Clarisse with a frown.

"Did we aid a soul on its journey back?" Jason asked looking at the other two. Mathan nodded hesitantly.

"I think so," he said. "After your…incident, Clarisse and I managed to kill the officer that stabbed you."

Jason paused for a moment and would have collapsed had Mathan not been keeping a tight grip on him.

"Who was it?"

"Chris Rodriguez," Clarisse growled. "He betrayed all of us and got all of my men killed."

With his free hand, Mathan reached out and placed it firmly on the ailing girl's shoulder. Clarisse flinched for a second before covering it with her own and giving him a weak smile.

"We need to push on. If your dream is correct," Jason began, "then the hunters don't have much longer. We came looking for the Argonauts and I'm sure we'll find them in that cave."

Clarisse and Mathan followed his gaze to the large cave the shop owner had told them was beneath the cliff. The opening was just wide enough for them to enter, but narrow enough that it wouldn't be an easy task. Nevertheless, the three of them forced their way into the cave.

As soon as they entered, they came upon a massive cistern. The cold wind that had chilled them before no longer reached them, and for that they were thankful. Mathan took a moment to look at his surroundings and couldn't help but gasp. The cistern was easily four football field lengths long and stalagmites and stalactites lined the roof and ground. Along the cave walls, ran veins of some green substance. At first Mathan thought it was uranium or some form of radioactive material, but when Clarisse reached out to touch it, a green mist flowed from the cave and wrapped around her hand before dissipating.

"This cave is literally made of the mist," whispered Clarisse in awe. Mathan and Jason looked at the mist veins in even more amazement.

A single path was seemingly carved into the ground. It wound its way around the stalagmites on the ground and was wet from the dripping water and from snow melting within the cave. Mathan frowned. Just because the wind wasn't blowing directly on them didn't mean it wasn't cold. The water should be frozen here. He hesitantly removed Jason's arm from his shoulder and ignored the confused look he received. Mathan removed his heating pad, put it in his pack, and then took of his jacket. He sucked in a breath expecting to feel cold, but was pleasantly surprised to find the cave to be just warm enough to go without the heavy clothing.

"We don't need our jackets in here," he told the others. "It's actually pretty nice."

Clarisse and Jason looked much more hesitant—they weren't as warm-blooded as the son of Vulcan—but they eventually followed suit and removed their jackets. They smiled at each other when they realized too that it was just as nice as Mathan said it was. Mathan took Jason's arm and put it around his shoulder again. They continued into the cave following the small rivulet of water. The sounds of their feet hitting the wet stone echoed through the enclosed space. They all winced at first, worried that whatever could possibly be their death within the cave would hear them approaching.

Light from the opening of the cave lasted for about an hour before Mathan was forced to bring out his flashlight. Clarisse and Jason both took out theirs as well, but Clarisse had a hand on her spear as well just in case. Mathan kept his thumb on the side button of the flashlight that would change it into his hammer. Jason wasn't able to carry his coin and his flashlight at the same time, so he kept his flashlight pointed directly ahead of them so that they would always see where they were stepping.

None of them were sure how long they were walking, when the air suddenly grew much warmer. The three of them in their long sleeve camp shirts were forced to roll up the sleeves, though that did nothing to keep them from sweating. Clarisse grabbed the bottom of her shirt and pulled it into a small knot and tied it with a hair tie. The action resulted in much skin showing and Mathan blushing crimson as his eyes were drawn to her toned sides and stomach. Jason caught Mathan's gaze and forced himself not to laugh which only resulted in him snorting and tearing up. Mathan glared at his friend and half-heartedly punched him in the gut.

"Oh, not nice. I'm injured remember?" teased Jason as he grimaced. He didn't miss, however, the look of guilt that passed over Mathan's face. "What is it?"

Mathan shook his head. "I'll tell you later."

Jason searched him for a moment before shrugging. "Whatever you say, lover boy."

Mathan growled but did not have the heart to tell his friend to put a sock in it.

Clarisse heard their whispering and turned to ask what was going on when a loud noise tore through the silence of the cave. The noise was similar to the battlecries the three were accustomed to. Clarisse held up a fist and put a finger up to her lips. Mathan clicked the button on his flashlight, and his hammer sprang up. The hammer made the sharp sound of metal scraping against metal making Jason and Clarisse glare at him. Mathan had the decency to look abashed.

"Who dares enter my home?" roared a blood-curdling voice. The three demigods nearly wet themselves in fear. The voice was more powerful and more intense than any of the Olympians or even the Titans. They began to sweat profusely, but since they were already sweating there wasn't much of a difference. Their shirts were already ruined.

"Answer me!" the voice roared once more. Mathan nearly dropped his hammer as did Clarisse with her spear.

Jason took a deep breath and realizing that things would only be worse if they refused to answer opened his mouth. Before he could speak though, Mathan clamped his hand over Jason's mouth.

"What are you doing?" Mathan hissed. Jason tore the hand away with the thumb of the hand holding the flashlight and glared at Mathan.

"If we don't answer whoever is down there will most likely kill us."

"He'll most likely kill us regardless!"

"Maybe but we won't know for sure unless we answer will we?"

Mathan glared back but did not argue. Jason inwardly smiled that Mathan still listened to him and turned back towards the darkness ahead of them.

"We are Jason Grace, Clarisse La Rue, and Mathan Foley. We are demigods from Camp Half-Blood. Who are you?" called back Jason. There was silence for a moment and then the sound of drums echoed throughout the cave. The drums began beating slowly, but picked up the tempo until they were pounding at a very fast beat. The dim glow from the mist veins in the stone walls brightened and pulsated with each beat of the drums. Clarisse turned to watch their sides and back and gasped when she saw hooded figures briefly appear around them. The mist acted as a sort of strobe light making the figures appear with jagged movements. Taking count Clarisse counted nine figures around them. The drums continued to beat faster and faster until they hit one last time and the mist dimmed to black. Before Clarisse could move again, the mist veins glowed brighter than before and remained aglow. The figures were gone.

"Um…Clarisse…" whispered Mathan. Clarisse turned towards Mathan and found him staring wide-eyed towards the deep end of the cave. Clarisse followed his gaze and couldn't help but shake in fear. Before them stood the nine hooded figures. None carried any weapons as far as Clarisse could see, but the sheer power rolling off from them was enough to turn anybody away. Clarisse steeled her nerves and gripped her spear tighter.

"Who are you?" she asked fiercely though her voice nearly cracked. "What do you want from us?"

"You wish to pass through this cave do you not?" the voice came again. Clarisse tried to see which figure was talking, but it did not appear as though any of them were the ones speaking.

"We do," said Mathan. Clarisse had to commend the Roman. His voice never wavered though she knew he was just as terrified as her.

"We will allow you to pass," said the voice, "under one condition."

"Which is what?" Jason asked.

"You must prove your worth before you may pass. Bring forth your champion to fight our champion in a duel of heroes."

"If our champion wins will you allow us to pass?" asked Clarisse.

The voice laughed an unnerving laugh. "If your champion happens to be lucky enough to defeat our champion then we shall allow you to pass yes."

"And if your champion wins?" asked Mathan.

"Then you will be cursed in the name of the most powerful force of this realm."

"May we take a minute to discuss this?" asked Jason. The voice paused for a moment.

"That is acceptable. You have one minute."

Clarisse scrambled over to the two Romans and put her hands on their shoulders. "What are we going to do?"

Jason closed his eyes and thought for a moment. "It should be you, Clarisse."

"What?" asked Mathan and Clarisse at the same time. Jason chuckled but nodded.

"I need Mathan's help with my injuries. He has experience with medicine. You, Clarisse, are a very skilled fighter and are more than capable of being our champion."

"Are-are you sure?" she asked uncertainly. Mathan nodded.

"I agree with him. I can't risk fighting since Jason will need me. You need to be the one."

"But what if I fail?" she hissed. Mathan squeezed her shoulder.

"You won't. We have faith in you."

Clarisse looked at him for a moment, finding the confidence she needed. Finding it after a minute, she nodded still a tad uncertain. "I'll do it. But if I die I will be waiting in the Underworld for you two and I will make your afterlives miserable."

The two boys grinned and gave her friendly pats on the back.

"Go get 'em, Clarisse," said Jason. Mathan nodded in agreement. Clarisse grinned at them and turned back to the hooded figures.

"I will face your champion," she said. "What are the rules of this duel of champions?"

"The fight will last till either one is dead or incapacitated in any manner," the voice responded. Clarisse nodded feeling more confident. Even if she lost there was a possibility that she wouldn't necessarily be killed. Although she still wasn't sure if living while being cursed was worth it.

Mathan watched her pull her spear, shield and her breastplate and helmet out. He couldn't help the anxiety building up inside him. Jason nudged him slightly.

"She'll be fine, Mathan," he said. Mathan nodded not even looking at him.

"I know. Just worried."

Jason grinned knowing his friend was developing a rather strong crush on the daughter of Ares. He wisely held off from teasing Mathan. He too was worried about Clarisse and felt a little guilty about being glad it wasn't him in her position.

"Are these parameters acceptable, demigod?" asked the voice.

Clarisse nodded. "They are."

"Then prepare yourself."

With that the nine hooded figures moved to the side where they lined the stone walls. Behind them emerged a single figure. The other champion was covered head to toe in shimmering armor that seemed to pulsate just as the mist had done earlier. The figure was much larger than Clarisse was expecting. It stood easily fifteen feet tall and brandished a sword of pure gold. Her heart clenched and she prayed silently to Percy that she would manage to defeat this champion.

The champion seemed to sense her fear. It stabbed its sword deep into the stone floor and crouched into a battle stance. Its hands were held out to either side and its feet were spread evenly apart. With fluid motions it began to rotate its hands in strange motions. Clarisse couldn't help but smirk thinking that this champion was obviously underestimating her when she saw what was happening. As the champion's hands moved, the mist poured out from the walls and began to circle around Clarisse. She tried to take a stand back, but found that the mist had become nearly solid and was keeping her in place.

"What the f-," she hissed when the mist began to cover her entire body. Mathan and Jason tried to scream, but found that they couldn't make a noise. Clarisse tried to hack at the mist with her spear, but the mist covered her arm and held it in place. Her entire body below the neck was frozen completely in place, and as the mist began to rise towards her head she stared at the other champion in horror. She hadn't even been able to raise her weapon in defense against this figure. There was no way she could have defeated it. She closed her eyes in surrender when she felt the mist force her body to a kneeling position.

"Yield?" asked the figure. It was the same voice as before. Clarisse opened her eyes and looked up at the champion. She glared at it.

"I yield," she muttered angrily. Mathan and Jason closed their eyes fearing for what would happen to their friend. "Will you curse me now?"

The champion watched her—or at least she thought he was watching her. She couldn't see the champion's eyes or any part of his face for that matter. "Yes. I will curse you now."

Clarisse closed her eyes forcefully. Her face scrunched up in anticipation.

The figure knelt down, and Clarisse could feel the sheer heat from the champion's power warm her face.

"I curse you, Clarisse La Rue, to bearing my blessing for the rest of your days," whispered the figure. Clarisse opened her eyes in disbelief to find herself staring into the golden eyes of the champion. Before she could say anything, she felt the mist constrict around her and then seep into her skin. The amount of power she felt when it happened was mind-boggling and Clarisse nearly fell over in pain of it changing her very essence, her eyes closed. When the pain finally dissipated, she opened her eyes. The champion's golden eyes were watching her with obvious amusement.

"Percy?" she whispered. The champion removed his helmet to reveal the face of a young man. He had a thick beard covering his entire jaw, and his head was shaved clean. The champion rose back up and slowly shrunk to his mortal height.

"Surprise," Percy whispered back with a grin. Clarisse's eyes widened and she wasted no second to latch onto him. Mathan and Jason watched in utter confusion.

"How is this possible?" she muttered into his shoulder. Percy hugged her back.

"All in good time, my old friend," he said. "First, I need to greet these two."

Clarisse let go of Percy with a wide smile and let him face the two boys. Mathan and Jason stared at him for a minute before Jason realized who it was.

"P-Percy?" he whispered. Mathan's eyes widened and he searched Percy's face. When he reached Percy's golden eyes, he couldn't help but grin widely.

"Percy!" Mathan cried out. Percy smiled brightly and walked over towards them.

"My friends, it is so good to see you both," he said. He hugged the both of them tightly, and frowned when Jason grimaced in pain. "What happened here?"

"It's a long story," muttered Mathan. Percy eyed him for a moment, sensing there was much to the story that Mathan would be unwilling to share.

"Well, we can't have this," Percy said and waved his hand. The mist returned out of the stone and created a small ball of light over Jason's wound. Percy closed his fist, and the ball shot into Jason's body. The son of Jupiter winced in pain, but it only lasted a few minutes. When the pain left he removed his arm gingerly from Mathan's shoulder and rotated his upper body. Feeling no pain from his back or shoulder, Jason smiled gratefully.

"Thank you," he said earnestly.

"How are you back, Percy?" asked Mathan. Percy just smiled and backed up so that Clarisse could join in the conversation.

"It is a very long and interesting story that will take quite some time. Unfortunately, we don't have that kind of time. Clarisse, I believe you had a dream last night?"

Clarisse spluttered. "How could you possibly know that?"

Percy grinned cheekily. "I am the god of fate. I just know things."

"The god of fate?" asked Jason. "Does that mean you have fully regained your true power?"

"No," said Percy with a frown. "It is part of the long story, but I am not fully back yet. The only reason you three can even physically touch me at all is due to this incredible cave, and from the help of my friends here."

Percy waved a hand to the nine hooded figures by the wall. The three demigods turned to look at them having completely forgotten they were there.

"Who are they?" asked Mathan. Percy smirked once again.

"Them? Oh they're nobody really," he replied. "Only nine of the most powerful heroes this world has ever seen."

The three demigods looked at him in confusion.

"Who?" they asked simultaneously.

Percy smiled wide. "Jason, Mathan, Clarisse…meet the Argonauts."

[LINEBREAK]

Rachel Elizabeth Dare, the new oracle, bit down on her paintbrush as she climbed up the stairs towards the roof of her father's penthouse apartment. In her arms she carried her art supplies and her easel. The air was warm and the weather was gorgeous. It was a beautiful day to paint. Rachel backed into the door leading outside and hobbled over to her preferred spot. The sun hit it at just the perfect angle for her to paint till quite late.

With practiced ease Rachel set up her easel and her supplies. It didn't take long before she had a canvas in place and paint on her wooden palette. She dipped her brush into the black. The moment the brush hit the canvas, her mind went blank and she began to paint without even thinking. The image on the canvas slowly began to form. For hours she painted until her mind cleared up, and she could look at the canvas.

The image was horrific. Splatters of dark reds and black covered the canvas with streaks of orange and yellow throughout it. Rachel did not recognize what it was, but she soon realized that it wasn't really her that had painted it but the Oracle. She reached up to touch the canvas and felt the power of the Oracle course through her body. She looked up towards where the Empire State Building scraped the sky and opened her mouth.

" _Foes bear arms to the Doors of Death._

 _An oath to keep with a final breath._

 _Past and present must unify,_

 _The world the usurper shall purify._ "

 **A/N:** **I'm back! I meant to get this chapter written and published much earlier, but the holiday season was very busy for me and I had no time to get on the computer at all. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Also, I'm sure you all have noticed that I changed the rating from M to T in both Balancing Act and BACW. The reason is that the more gruesome scenes of these stories are not really bad enough to merit a M rating, and this story will not contain any lemons.**

 **Thank you to everyone that favorited, followed, and reviewed. You guys are terrific!**

 **UPDATE 2/16/17: I know many of you are waiting the next chapter for this story, and I need to apologize. I haven't managed to sit down and write the story. Part of it is that I am a busy college student so setting time aside to freewrite is difficult; however, the biggest issue I am having is finding any motivation to keep writing this story. This story is NOT discontinued and I will finish it eventually, but I am putting it on temporary hiatus. This could be just a month or so, but the reason for it is that the last few chapters have gotten only 1 or 2 reviews each. Reviews help me see if you guys are enjoying the story or not and tell me what to improve on. The lack of reviews is just leaving me without much motivation. If you want me to sit down and spend time to write this story PLEASE review! Reviews are fuel for the writer.**

 **In other news, I am currently writing the first few chapters of a new story (I actually do have the motivation to write this so that's where my freewriting time is going towards). It is a Harry Potter fanfiction that may possibly become a HP/PJO crossover. I only have three chapters done, and I will wait until I have around 5 written before publishing (each chapter will be 10,000 words). If that sounds interesting, follow me and keep your eyes open for my new story to be published. Thanks! - Sweets**


	12. Chapter 11

_Percy waved a hand to the nine hooded figures by the wall. The three demigods turned to look at them having completely forgotten they were there._

 _"Who are they?" asked Mathan. Percy smirked once again._

 _"Them? Oh, they're nobody really," he replied. "Only nine of the most powerful heroes this world has ever seen."_

 _The demigods looked at him in confusion._

 _"Who?" they asked simultaneously._

 _Percy smiled wide. "Jason, Mathan, Clarisse…meet the Argonauts."_

The Argonauts removed their hoods and watched the three demigods. Amusement was clearly evident on their faces as they watched the demigods splutter and stare at them wide-eyed. They glanced at Percy to see if he would make any introductions, but the god of fate simply stood there chuckling softly to himself. Figuring they would just have to wait, they turned back to the demigods and stood there awkwardly. Time ticked by agonizingly slowly as the demigods attempted to regain their dignity. Eventually, the female stepped forward narrowing her eyes.

"Nico?" she asked. "Nico, is that you?"

Nico smiled brightly and stepped forward in front of the other Argonauts. He pulled Clarisse into a hug though it took her a moment to realize what was going on.

"Hey, Clarisse," Nico said, "long time no see!"

Clarisse pulled away and punched him hard in the shoulder. "I thought you were dead!"

"I did die," said Nico sheepishly. He scratched the back of his head. "However, being the Prince of the Underworld has some perks, and when the Fates came and offered me a spot in the Argonauts, I couldn't refuse."

"Aren't you Pluto's ambassador to Rome?" asked one of the other demigods. Nico turned to them and nodded.

"I was, but now I am an Argonaut. Good thing too since I hear Rome has lost its mind."

The demigod eyed him carefully but then nodded.

"Unfortunately," he agreed. He shook out his hand to Nico. "Name's Jason Grace."

Nico smiled and shook his hand. "Yes, I remember you. You were a Praetor correct?"

Jason nodded.

"Grace…Is Thalia your sister?" Nico continued. Jason again nodded.

"She is. Ju-Zeus came to our mom twice in both his Greek and Roman forms."

Nico whistled. "That's interesting. Perce, should I introduce the others or do you want the honors?"

"I'll do it," said Percy as he moved over to the other eight. Nico moved over to the side to allow the demigods to meet the other Argonauts. "Before I introduce these incredible people I must give you a little background to the Argonauts. After I left Olympus and placed Zeus in charge, I wandered around the earth for a long time. I ran into several heroes, and it didn't take long before I realized that I needed to create an organization—a society of demigods that upheld the balance in the world. The Argonauts were unnamed heroes that worked throughout the world under my guidance. After the fall of Greece, the Argonauts joined me on my ship _Argo_ , and together we continued my duties as god of balance and fate.

"Now," Percy said with a smile, "let me introduce you to them all. Meet Orpheus, son of Apollo. Odysseus, King of Ithaca. Artemisia I of Caria, Queen of Halicarnassus. Boudicca, Queen of the Iceni. Aristodemus, son of Eleos. Agis III, King of Sparta. Lord Bercilak de Hautdesert, the Green Knight. And finally, Luke Castellan, son of Hermes."

One by one each of the heroes stepped forward and saluted the demigods. When Luke stepped forward, he was immediately engulfed in a bear hug by Clarisse.

"I can't believe you're alive!" she exclaimed. Luke laughed, patted her back, and pulled back.

"The Fates gave me the same offer they gave Nico. I could have either stayed in Elysium or return to the world as an Argonaut," Luke said.

"You chose wisely, my friend," Percy said with a smile as he patted Luke's shoulder. He turned back to the demigods. "I'm sure some of these names are very familiar to you. Each played important roles in history, and each was chosen by me specifically to join the Argonauts."

Percy opened his mouth to continue speaking when the third demigod's stomach growled loudly. The young man blushed crimson as everyone began to chuckle. Percy smiled knowingly and turned towards Odysseus. "Get our guests some food. We have a lot to go over before we make our next move."

Odysseus saluted Percy and began barking orders to the other Argonauts. Quickly, camp was made and food was cooking over a warm fire. The demigods sat down around the fire realizing for the first time in a while how nice it was to not be completely alone. Percy sat down across the fire from them.

"I'm sure you have many questions," he said casually. The demigods snorted.

"That's an understatement," said the third demigod. Jason and Clarisse elbowed him, but Percy only chuckled.

"It's alright, Mathan. I understand." Percy pulled the ladle out from the pot on the fire and sipped the stew. He nodded to himself and pulled out thirteen bowls. He poured the stew into each bowl until everyone including the Argonauts and he had some. They ate in silence for a few minutes until Percy sat his bowl down by his feet.

"I know you have questions," Percy said again, "but unfortunately, we have very pressing issues at the moment. Clarisse, what was it that you dreamed last night?"

The other two looked at her confused. Clarisse looked down at her stew then slowly met Percy's eyes. "I saw the hunters. They're imprisoned somewhere very cold, and a really large man was whipping Lady Artemis."

Percy sighed quietly to himself. He clasped his hands together and waved his hand towards the Argonauts. Odysseus stood up quickly and saluted.

"Sir?" he asked. Percy stood up and turned towards the legendary hero.

"Pack up camp," Percy said. "We are moving out now. Artemis and the hunters need our help."

Odysseus saluted once more and quickly got the rest of the Argonauts to pack up the camp. Soon all that was left was the ashes from what was the fire. Clarisse and the other demigods stood up and grabbed their few belongings.

"Where are we going?" she asked. "Do you know who that large figure was?"

Percy nodded. "That was most likely Orion. He is a giant—son of Gaea and Tartarus—born to oppose Apollo and Artemis."

Clarisse's eyes widened. "Wasn't he the only male to earn her favor? Aside from you of course."

"Yes," Percy nodded. "Orion actually earned both our favors, though when I used my godly powers and looked into his person and his fate, I realized that deep down there was a much darker reasoning for him coming to the hunt. He wished to imprison and kill Artemis. We killed him, but it turns out that Gaea has somehow managed to bring him back. The fact that he has Artemis is not a good sign."

"Why not?" asked Mathan.

"Because each giant is born to oppose one of the Olympians," said Nico as he walked over to them. "Orion was born to oppose Artemis and Apollo, and if he is back, then that means the other giants must have returned as well."

Clarisse nodded. "One of them attacked us at our fort outside Kansas City. Enceladus, I think was who it was."

"The bane of Athena," Percy nodded. "He is still causing destruction there which makes it all the more important that we reach the hunters."

"Why's that?" Clarisse asked.

Percy looked at her, his eyes hard and cold. "Because Thanatos has been captured alongside them, and as long as he is chained up the monsters will not be hindered by death."

The demigods paled and looked at each other nervously.

"What do we do then?" asked Jason. Percy waved the Argonauts over. Odysseus, Nico, and Luke handed each of the demigods combat packs.

"You will join us in liberating Thanatos and the hunters." Percy waved his hands and his armor appeared on his body. The demigods gaped at the new armor.

"I promise I'll answer all your questions," Percy said with a smile, "after we do this."

They quickly got everything together. The Argonauts donned their cloaks and covered their heads with the hoods. Percy motioned for the demigods to reach into their packs, and each of them found new armor. They put the armor on as quickly as they could, and soon they were all ready to leave the Cave of Mists. Odysseus led the way further into the cave much to the demigods' confusion.

"This cave is more like a tunnel," said Percy, noticing their confused looks. "It connects that forest you came from to anywhere we wish to go."

"How is that possible?" asked Jason. Percy smiled.

"Magic."

Clarisse and Mathan snorted as Jason looked slightly embarrassed. Percy laughed and punched him lightly on the arm.

"I'm glad to see you three. I've missed you all very much."

"We missed you too," said Clarisse. "Things just haven't been right since you…since you died."

The air grew somber at the reminder of Percy's gruesome death at his own hands during the battle with Kronos. He bowed his head sorrowfully. "I never wished for it to end that way. I was so focused on defeating Kronos that I neglected the prophecy itself."

Jason cocked his head. "What do you mean?"

"The prophecy," Percy said, "stated that I would reach sixteen in total awe. I wasn't sure what that mean, but I realized not too long ago that it meant that I had become a full god once more. If I had known that, the scales would have been greatly tipped in my favor, and the war would have ended much more differently. Maybe the war with Rome would never have happened if I hadn't forgotten the prophecy."

Clarisse put a hand on Percy's shoulder. "It wasn't your fault. You didn't know. No one blames you for any of this."

Percy eyed her for a moment before nodding. A small smile graced his face. "I appreciate that."

"As much as I like reminiscing about what could have been," Mathan said, "I'd like to know where we are going."

"I'm sure you would," Percy nodded. "We are headed for the Hubbard Glacier. It's in Alaska."

"Why Alaska?" asked Jason.

"Alaska is the only place in the world where the gods have no power," explained Percy. "Artemis is completely powerless."

"Alaska is also home to Alcyoneus," said Nico hanging back. "Alcyoneus is the eldest giant and is the bane of my father."

Percy nodded. "He's also immortal within Alaska."

"How will we be able to defeat him _and_ Orion then?" asked Mathan incredulously.

"Orion can be taken care of easily," said Percy. "As for Alcyoneus, we will need to immobilize him and drag him towards Canada where he can be killed. Thankfully, Hubbard Glacier is only a mile away from the Canadian border."

They continued walking in silence. The demigods pondered about the upcoming fight. Though Clarisse had encountered a giant before, none of them had actually engaged a giant in combat. They were not sure what to expect, though if Artemis and the hunters had been captured, they knew that the fight would not be easy. Percy watched them carefully, but did not say anything. It seemed as though they had been walking in the tunnel for hours, and eventually the tunnel widened and light could be seen in the distance. Percy turned towards the demigods.

"I need to warn you three about something," he said. At their confused looks he continued. "After we leave this cave, I will not be able to help hardly at all."

"Why not?" they asked at the same time. Percy sighed.

"As I said earlier, the only reason you can even touch me now is because of the mist in the cave and because of the Argonauts. Long story short, my soul has been fractured and I require the ichor of eight beings in order to return to my full glory. I was given one before I returned to the world, and my loyal Argonauts had five vials of ichor that I needed."

"They just happened to have the ichor that you needed?" asked Jason. Percy nodded.

"One of the first Argonauts was a child of Hecate, and in order to keep powerful beings in balance, we collected vials of their ichor so that the child of Hecate could use them in spells. Even after she passed, the Argonauts continued to keep ahold of the vials on my orders." Percy laughed. "I never thought we would ever actually have to use them, but I am very glad we had them."

"Whose ichor did you need?" asked Clarisse.

Percy shook his head. "I'll explain later. Right now what's important is that you three cannot rely on me to help you in the upcoming battle. If Alcyoneus summons any ghosts or undead, I can help you out then."

"Don't worry," said Nico. "The Argonauts will help you three out."

"Help us out?" asked Mathan. "You make it sound like we are going to be leading the charge."

"It _is_ your quest," explained Percy. "Your quest was to find the Argonauts in order to help you find a way to end the war. You found me and the Argonauts, but the upcoming battle is still up to you three."

"Well shit," muttered Clarisse. "No pressure."

Percy chuckled. "Loosen up. It could be worse."

"How?" asked Jason incredulously. "How could it be worse?"

"Without my help you'd still be in tremendous pain," Percy pointed out. Jason grumbled but nodded.

"I guess you're right," he said, "but this still sucks."

[LINEBREAK]

"That's it right there," said Reyna. Lupa narrowed her eyes and looked down at the courtyard where Gaea's fountain was.

"That little fountain is keeping all of Rome in her grasp?" Lupa asked confused. Reyna nodded.

"I'm not sure how," she said, "but that's it. One sip of that water and you become her minion."

Lupa looked at her. "Then why was I never given any water?"

Reyna shrugged. "Maybe it only works on mortals."

Lupa nodded. She pulled out the sack Reyna had given her. She opened the flap and grabbed the bomb within. "You're sure this will do the trick?"

"It's got to," said Reyna. "Gaea is still not fully formed yet, so this fountain is her only true presence on earth. If we destroy that fountain, Romans will not have any of her water to drink. As soon as Gaea's water passes through their systems they'll come back to their senses."

"How long will that take?"

"Not too long. It's still early in the morning so most of the Romans won't have much of the water in them. They'll wake up, take a piss, and be clean once again."

"Well," Lupa said, "let's get to it. The longer we wait, the longer Rome is under Gaea's spell."

Reyna nodded and turned to do her job. Before she could walk away, Lupa placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Thank you, Reyna," Lupa said sincerely. "You are doing Rome a great service."

Reyna smiled and nodded before turning and leaving. Lupa watched carefully as Reyna made her way down into the courtyard. As she had claimed, the courtyard was relatively empty in the early hours. It had only been a day since Reyna had broken her out of prison, and had placed an order for no one to see the "deranged, hysterical wolf-goddess." Thankfully, everyone listened to Reyna, and no one had noticed her disappearance. Now all that was left was for them to blow up the fountain and restore Rome to its true glory. Lupa shook her head to clear her thoughts and looked at the courtyard. Reyna stood by the only road leading towards the courtyard from the barracks, looked over to where Lupa was hiding, and waved her over.

Lupa scurried down into the courtyard and made her way quickly towards the fountain. In truth, the fountain did not appear to be much. Lupa supposed that was Gaea's way of making the fountain and its power go unnoticed. If it hadn't been for Reyna breaking through the spell, Lupa was sure Rome would never escape Gaea's clutches. Lupa knelt down by the fountain and placed the bomb on the inside of it. She snapped her fingers and a small flame appeared on her pointer finger. She reached down and lit the fuse on the bomb, and sprang up. Reyna joined her and the two of them ran for cover. Just before the explosion, they reached their original hiding place, and ducked their heads.

The bomb blast utterly destroyed the fountain. Chunks of earth—stone and clay—shot into the sky and destroyed much of the courtyard and the buildings around it. Reyna chanced a look up, and spotted a chunk of stone falling fast towards where they were hiding. She shoved Lupa out of the way, and rolled to the side. The stone hit where they had been laying with a resounding thud. Lupa looked around the stone and gave Reyna a thankful nod. Alarms erupted throughout the city, and not long after, guards ran into the courtyard.

"Do they know what we've done?" asked Lupa. Reyna shook her head.

"Doubtful. I was one of Gaea's most trusted servants and I didn't even realize what the fountain was until yesterday."

Lupa opened her mouth to speak, but was interrupted by a loud voice from the courtyard.

"Who the hell did this?" screamed a loud voice. Reyna flinched.

"Is that Octavian?" asked Lupa. Reyna nodded.

"He _is_ Gaea's most trusted servant. He definitely knows about the water."

Lupa snarled. "Great."

"Find whoever did this!" shouted Octavian at some guards. "Find them and bring me their heads!"

Reyna could not help but laugh. She turned towards Lupa. "Are you ready for this?"

Lupa nodded, smiled, and whistled. In less than a minute, a large pack of wolves emerged from behind her. "I'm more than ready."

Reyna smiled and stood up, Lupa following suit. They and the wolves left their hiding spot and made their way down to the courtyard.

"You guards," said Octavian as they drew closer. "Head over to the headquarters and—"

Octavian broke off as he noticed Reyna, Lupa and the wolves approaching.

"Guards!" Reyna shouted. "Arrest this man. He is a traitor to the state."

Octavian spluttered and the guards, unsure of who to obey, hesitated. Reyna snarled and marched up towards Octavian.

"This man has betrayed us all and must be punished," she roared. Octavian finally managed to regain his voice and pointed a shaking finger at Reyna.

"Do not listen to her! _She_ is the traitor! She has released the wolf goddess from prison!" Octavian shouted. The guards looked over at Lupa and something flashed through their minds making them realize that Octavian was the one to listen to. They marched towards Reyna and Lupa, their spears up in an attempt to arrest them. Reyna snarled and pulled out her sword. She batted the first guard's spear to the side and rammed her shoulder into the guard's chest. The guard grunted and collapsed to the ground. Lupa shifted into a wolf, and in less than a minute, all the guards had been tackled to the ground by the wolves. They snarled in the guards' faces until each of the Romans wet themselves.  
Reyna watched them all curiously with anticipation while Octavian watched in horror. It did not take long before the guard's eyes flashed brown and then returned to normal. They groaned in fear of the wolves. Reyna walked over to Lupa.

"I think they're clean now, my lady," Reyna said. Lupa, in her wolf form, nodded and she and the wolves released the guards. The Romans got back up to their feet shaking.

"What have we done?" asked one of the guards. Reyna recognized the voice instantly as Frank Zhang.

"We were tricked, Frank," said Reyna. "Gaea brainwashed us using water from natural springs. This fountain which provides water for all Romans comes directly from her. By drinking the water we have all been brainwashed into becoming her minions."

"I-I- We betrayed Rome," said Frank, horrified. Reyna shrugged.

"We aren't at fault," she said. "We didn't choose to do this."

Reyna meant to continue speaking when she noticed Octavian attempting to sneak away. Reyna pointed at him, and before she could say anything, Lupa's wolves charged towards him sending him to the ground. Reyna smirked and turned back towards Frank and the other guards.

"Go, change your clothes," said Reyna. "Encourage everyone you see to go to the bathroom. As soon as the water in their systems has passed through Gaea's influence will be gone."

"What about all the mortals we enslaved?" asked Frank frantically. "We have done so much evil!"

Reyna hesitated and thought for a moment. "Are all the minor Roman gods still imprisoned in the old district?"

"They are," said Frank confused.

"Then release them. Tell them that Rome has been liberated from Gaea, and they need to bring the mist back. I'm not sure how they'll do it, but they need to use the mist to change the mortal's memories of what happened here."

Frank looked ready to argue, but kept his thoughts to himself and nodded. "Yes, Praetor."

Reyna nodded and watched as he and the other guards headed off for the barracks to change to make the other Romans go piss. Lupa shifted back into her human form and walked over to Reyna.

"Rome has a long way to go before it can return to its former glory," said Reyna.

"It does," agreed Lupa, "but now that we've rid the city of Gaea, we have a chance to rebuild."

Reyna nodded. "Let's just hope that the Romans outside of the city fighting the Greeks can be cleaned soon."

"And let's hope that Olympus does not rain judgement down upon us for our actions," Lupa said.

They both looked up towards Olympus. The thought of the home of the gods brought up a question none of them had yet thought to ask: where had the Olympians been when Rome fell?

 **A/N: I'm back! It has been a VERY long time, but I'm finally free enough to start writing again, and I'm excited to continue this story. Thank you all for continuing to stick with me despite the long wait. This chapter isn't too long since I needed a chapter to just get back into the groove of writing again.**

 **Please leave a review letting me know what you think of this chapter and the story so far. Thanks to everyone who has favorited, followed, and reviewed so far.**

 **Last note, this chapter has yet to be fully edited so any and all mistakes are entirely my own.**


	13. Chapter 12

Clarisse wrapped her coat tightly against herself to block out the cold. The wind whipped around with tremendous force nearly knocking the entire group off the ice. They had finally reached Hubbard Glacier, and the giant's compound was visible in the distance. Clarisse looked over at Mathan and Jason. Both looked miserable in the cold, especially Mathan. The son of Vulcan definitely did not belong in the ice. The Argonauts did not appear to be as miserable as them. Clarisse wanted to spit on them.

"Alright, we are almost there," said Percy. The Argonauts immediately formed up and stood at attention. Clarisse and the Romans fumbled and tried to line up beside the Argonauts. Percy smirked. "Our priority is finding Artemis and the hunters first. From there we will find Thanatos and free him. Only after that should we go and hunt down the giants."

"What if we encounter the giants first?" asked Boudicca.

"If we encounter the giants first, the Argonauts will take care of them." Percy looked at Clarisse. "This was your dream so it will have to be your mission to find the hunters."

Clarisse nodded. "And if we encounter a giant ourselves?"

"I'm more than certain you three will be able to stop them."

She wasn't so sure about that, but she was determined to prove herself. Percy made sure everyone knew what they needed to do, and they continued towards the compound. As they got closer, the ground became less ice and more stonework. In some places the ice was shaped almost exactly like stones. The air got warmer as well, and Clarisse felt something strange in the air.

"Magic," whispered Luke from beside her. "They're using magic to keep themselves warm."

How would they ever be able to win this fight? Clarisse felt herself growing increasingly nervous. Her arms began to shake.

"Are you okay, Clarisse?" asked Jason. Clarisse nodded.

"Cold." She refused to admit she was nervous. Percy made eye contact from the other side of Jason and gave her a reassuring smile. It helped.

The trek across the ice ended, and they finally reached what appeared to be the gate into the compound. Percy began making hand gestures to the Argonauts. Clarisse wasn't sure what he was saying, but they all moved into position. Percy moved over closer to the demigods. Seeing him closer now that they weren't in the cave or the tunnels, Clarisse knew exactly what Percy meant by not being able to help. While he didn't exactly look like a ghost, he didn't seem like he was entirely solid.

"I need you three to follow immediately behind the Argonauts," he said.

"How are we getting in?" asked Mathan.

Percy pointed upwards, "we're going to climb."

As he said that, four of the Argonauts launched ropes up above the top of the gate. The demigods watched in amazement as the eight warriors began climbing the icy wall. As they climbed, they left enormous indentions in the ice. Four climbed at a time followed by the next four. Percy motioned for the demigods to follow him. He grabbed onto one of the ropes, made sure he actually could grab onto it, and began ascending. Mathan looked the most unsure, but he followed suit when Jason and Clarisse began climbing.

The climb itself did not take long nor did the descent on the other side, but afterwards Clarisse's hands were frozen. Mathan reached over and used his powers to warm her hands up. She smiled at him which made him blush a fiery red and let go immediately. Clarisse inwardly grinned at getting him so easily. In truth, she had not felt like herself lately. She was a daughter of Ares, but she wasn't her normal, aggressive self. She closed her eyes and mentally prepared herself for the upcoming fight. The thought sent fire through her blood.

The Argonauts led the way through the compound. No monsters were guarding the entrance which was either a sign that they were all congregating somewhere else, or the giants simply placed too much trust in their icy surroundings to keep out anyone else. As they continued making their way towards where Artemis and the hunters were located, a lone monster carrying a pike. Clarisse stepped forward to attack the monster when it crumbled to dust leaving Artemisia standing over its remains.

"Shit," Artemisia cursed. "It's already reforming."

"We'll need to hurry then," urged Percy. They hurried through the compound which narrowed into a single hallway. The walls were too close together for all to fit at once, so Percy motioned for them to pass through two at a time. As they made their way down the hallway, Clarisse began to hear screams of pain. She hoped for all of their sakes that none of the hunters had been harmed in any way.

They reached the end of the hallway with Lord Bercilak and Agis leading the charge. They all rushed into a single room that really wasn't a room at all. Instead of being surrounded by walls, Clarisse noted that they were surrounded only by ice. If they did have to drag Alcyoneus back to Canada at least they wouldn't have to drag the giant through the hallway again.

"Well, well, well," boomed a voice in front of them pulling Clarisse out of her trance. She paled slightly at what she saw. Directly in front of them stood two massive figures. One wore pelts of various animals and the other wore armor of pure ice, and between the two was Lady Artemis herself chained and on her knees. To the right were nearly a hundred monsters of various kinds standing around the other hunters and a strange figure chained to the ground.

"Orion," said Percy calmly. "I always knew you were a jackass, but to kidnap women and torture them? That's a new low even for you."

The giant looked confused. "Who are you? How do you know who I am?"

Percy didn't answer. Instead he gave the Argonauts another hand gesture. They wasted no time in charging at the enemy. Four of them, Bercilak, Agis, Boudicca, and Odysseus, charged at the giants while the other four charged at the monsters on the right. Percy turned towards the demigods. "Go help the hunters and free Thanatos. Until Thanatos is freed none of these assholes will stay dead."

Clarisse nodded and rushed towards the monsters with Jason and Mathan close behind her. She pulled her shield off of her back and held her spear firmly to the side. Jason and Mathan caught up to her and ran on either side their own weapons drawn. When they finally reached the fight, the Argonauts had already begun to lay waste to the monster horde. As the four warriors hacked at the monsters on the left and right, the demigods went for the monsters standing beside the hunters.

A monster attempted to slash its sword at Clarisse, but she knocked it away with her shield and thrust her spear into its chest. Using that momentum, she continued lunging forward impaling two other monsters. With a strong kick, she knocked the three monsters off her spear and looked over to Jason and Mathan. The two Romans were very impressive, holding their own against at least twenty monsters. Clarisse turned towards the hunters who all looked furious. None of them, she noted gladly, looked all that terrible. She slashed at the chains on Zoe and Thalia and helped them up.

"We are so glad to see you," said Thalia gratefully. Clarisse nodded with a smile.

"Of course."

"We need to help Lady Artemis," Zoe said firmly as she helped unchain the rest of the hunters. As each one was freed, they immediately joined in the fight. Clarisse was impressed that they managed to fight the monsters so well despite being unarmed.

"Keep the monsters off me," Clarisse said. "I need to free Thanatos."

Thalia and Zoe nodded and began rushing to join the Argonauts and the Romans in fighting the remaining monsters. As Clarisse made her way over to the strange looking figure she assumed was Thanatos, she noticed that more monsters were pouring out of crevices she hadn't seen earlier. She also paled when she saw that the monsters that had been killed already were beginning to reform. She rushed over to the strange figure.

"Thanatos?"

The figure looked up. His red eyes and almost skeletal face reminded Clarisse of pictures of demons she had seen before. "If you have come to free me, you're out of luck."

Clarisse looked at him confused.

"My chains can only be melted and only by the fire of life," Thanatos explained.

"What is that?" asked Clarisse. Thanatos shrugged.

"Either you have it or you don't."

"I think I can help," said Mathan as he fought his way over. Clarisse eyed his armor appreciatively-it was covered in monster blood.

"How will you help, demigod?" asked Thanatos. His voice was as cold as the ice around them. Mathan did not say anything but grabbed the end of Clarisse's spear.

"What are you-" she trailed off as Mathan sliced his palm open with the spear's tip. "What the Hades?!"

Mathan said nothing as he bent down and placed his palm on Thanatos' chains. At first nothing happened, but then the chain began to melt.

"A son of Vulcan," said Thanatos. It wasn't a question. Mathan nodded.

"You're free now," said Clarisse. "Now help us."

Thanatos threw the chains off of himself and stood up. Giant bat-like wings extended from his back, and he shook just as a dog would shake off water. "I intend to, demigod. You will no longer have to worry about monsters returning."

"That's it?" asked Mathan incredulously. Thanatos eyed him coldly.

"That's more than enough, son of Vulcan."

"Thanatos, be nice," said Percy coming up from behind them. Thanatos turned sharply towards him.

"By the gods," Thanatos whispered. "Gabriel? Is it really you?"

Percy nodded with a smile.

"I knew you hadn't truly died, but I could never find your spirit!"

"That's because when I was sent into the sky, my soul was shattered into various parts. I assume you know the process by which one can heal a shattered soul?"

Thanatos nodded. "You need mine?"

"I do," Percy agreed. "If you wouldn't mind."

Thanatos shook his head and cut his wrist with a clawed finger. Clarisse forced herself not to throw up. First Mathan and now this creepy demon thing. She may like the thrill of battle, but people cutting open veins just for the blood just felt wrong. Percy, however, held up a glass vial to Thanatos' vein gathering the ichor. If Clarisse thought seeing the god of death cut itself was bad, seeing Percy _drink_ was even worse. Even Mathan began to dry heave.

As the ichor poured down Percy's throat, the sky began to darken. Everyone fighting, the monsters, the Argonauts, the giants, the hunters all turned towards Percy. His eyes began to glow a blinding gold and for a moment, his body did as well. It was terrifying. It was beautiful. Just as quickly as the sky had turned dark, it flashed brilliantly. The Argonauts took advantage of the shock and reengaged the fight.

The two giants and the monsters were all taken by surprise. Percy, after having returned to normal, patted Thanatos on the shoulder. He turned towards the hunters and smiled at their looks of shock and awe.

"You can all hit me for leaving later. Right now we have giants to crush," he said. The hunters shook out of their stupor and nodded. Soon the last monster fell to Artemisia's blade, and everyone turned their attention to the giants.

"Hunters, help take down Orion, but remember you need a god to finish him off," Percy commanded. Zoe and Thalia nodded though both obviously did not want to leave Percy's side. Percy turned towards the others. "Help take Alcyoneus while I free Artemis."

With all the attention now on them, the giants struggled to keep the upper hand. The Argonauts and the hunters were too well trained, and the demigods added just enough to the fight to keep the giants on the defensive. Percy, as though he had no care in the world, walked over to Artemis who was staring at him with an expression that seemed to be anger, confusion and joy all at once. He knelt down beside her and removed the gag from her mouth.

"I'm back," he whispered. Tears began to stream down the normally stoic goddess' face. Percy reached out and wiped the tears away. "As much as you would like to question me about where I've been and how I'm back, we need your help to defeat the giants."

Artemis nodded and after Percy removed her chains, she joined in the fight. If the Argonauts and the hunters were exceptional fighters, Artemis was incomparably better. Even without weapons, she fought with grace and agility that proved her worth as an Olympian. Percy longed to fight beside her, but until the last part of his soul was returned, he would not be able to fight.

The fight was over in minutes. Both giants lay on the ground though Alcyoneus was unconscious. Orion watched fearfully as Artemis and Percy approached him.

"You attacked me and my hunters," hissed Artemis. Orion let out a hesitant laugh.

"Don't take it personally, Arty. I had my orders and I carried them out."

Boudicca handed her sword over to Artemis who slashed at the giant. With a howl of pain, Orion's left arm fell to the ground splattering the ice with ichor.

"Do not call me that," Artemis growled angrily. Percy made eye contact with Clarisse, and she felt a presence in her mind.

 _When Artemis strikes Orion, you need to strike him as well._ Clarisse nodded at his command and waited for the goddess to make her move.

"You wanted to know who I am, giant?" asked Percy. Orion eyed him. "Whenever you finally reform, I want you to convey a message to your father."

"And what's that?" spat Orion.

"Tell him that Gabriel has returned and this time the balance of fates is in my favor."

Orion's face paled as he realized who stood before him. "Impossi-"

He never finished the word. Artemis and Clarisse thrust their weapons at the giant, and as Clarisse's spear impaled his heart, Artemis removed his head. Everyone watched as the despicable giant crumpled into dust. For a moment nobody said a word. Then Artemis turned towards Percy.

Percy braced himself for the slap that he knew was coming. He closed his eyes and flinched as he saw a shadow of movement move across his eyelids. His muscles tightened but relaxed as Artemis embraced him. Percy opened his eyes and returned the embrace. Everyone turned away to give the gods privacy, though Clarisse noticed at both the Argonauts and the hunters looked quite pleased.

Artemis pulled away from Percy, and he noticed the tears in her eyes. "You're supposed to be dead."

"It's a long story," Percy whispered back. She looked into his eyes, and he kissed her softly. The kiss was tender and conveyed the loss and despair that both had felt at being separated once more. Percy finally broke the kiss and looked at her. "I promise to explain everything later, but now we need to get Alcyoneus out of here."

"Where do you plan to go after we take care of him?" asked Artemis. She glared at him. "I'm not letting you out of my sight again. You obviously cannot be trusted with a sword."

Percy grimaced at the memory but shook his head. "You won't have to."

"Nico," Percy commanded. Nico and the Argonauts turned towards him. "Get everyone to help and drag this sad excuse of a monster out of here." He pointed east. "That's Canada over there. Once you cross the border, you'll be able to kill him."

"We need a god to help," Nico said confused. Artemis took Boudicca's sword and impaled it in the giant's leg.

"There," she said. "That should help."

Nico nodded and began issuing orders to everyone to help drag the giant. Clarisse, the Romans, and the hunters moved over towards the gods.

"Where are we going?" asked Zoe. Percy turned towards her with a smile.

"You'll all need to go with the Argonauts. They'll show you the way into the Cave of Mists."

"You're not coming?" asked Jason. Percy looked at Artemis and shook his head.

"We'll come get you all in a few days." Percy looked at the hunters. "Boudicca and the other female Argonauts will make sure you are all taken care of."

The hunters nodded appreciatively.

"So where _are_ you going?" asked Clarisse. Everyone nodded wondering the same thing.

Percy turned away from everyone and looked off into the distant towards Olympus. "It's been a while, but it's time I return to Olympus." He looked back at them and smiled. "Only this time, I'm taking back my throne."

 **A/N: It is good to be back. I'm sorry for the long wait between chapters, but I decided to take the summer off to focus on my own personal writing. My goal is to one day be a published author, and while I enjoy this a lot, fanfiction is not made for profit. I'm back now, though, and I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I thought about ending with another cliffhanger but figured this would be a good place to end the chapter. Yes, I know it's not as long as other chapters, but since this story is VERY AU, it sometimes gets hard coming up with plots and chapters.**

 **On a side note, I have published another fanfic entitled EMPIRE OF DIRT. It is a Harry Potter/Percy Jackson crossover, that I hope you all may enjoy.**

 **As always please leave a review, favorite, and follow the story and thank you all for your wonderful support!**


	14. Chapter 13

Zeus stared anxiously at Artemis' empty throne. It had been several days since her and her hunters' disappearance, and no one knew what had become of them. He thought about asking Hermes or someone down on Earth, but this had to be kept quiet. Olympus was closed off to everyone for a reason, and no one save for Zeus was allowed in the throne room. He knew the others were beginning to ask questions, but now was not the time.

"Father," said Dionysus entering the throne room. "Something has happened."

Zeus eyed him. "What is it?"

Dionysus gulped and went to stand before Zeus' throne. "The demigods managed to hold the fort in Kansas City. Enceladus and his army failed in their attack."

Zeus slammed his fist into his throne. "How is this possible?"

"The Romans came to their senses," Dionysus explained. "From what our spies have learned, messengers from New Rome convinced the Roman leaders not to drink the water. Their minds were cleared the next day."

Zeus grimaced. Having Rome with the wool over its eyes was instrumental to his plans. "That is...unfortunate. But what of Enceladus? Even without the Romans he must have been able to take down the fort himself."

"That's the other thing..." Dionysus said hesitantly. "The monster army stopped reforming, and Chiron himself arrived with the Party Ponies and managed to defeat the Greek traitors as well."

"Thanatos has been freed?" Zeus growled. Thunder blasted throughout the throne room causing Dionysus' ears to ring.

"Has there been any word from Alcyoneus?"

"No, father," Dionysus said. "No one has heard anything from Alaska in months. Last I heard Orion was planning on heading up there, but I am not sure."

Zeus nodded. Then a thought came to him. "What has become of Enceladus? Did he retreat?"

Dionysus paled. "No...Athena arrived at the end of the battle. Enceladus is dead."

If his ears were ringing before, Dionysus thought he would be deaf now. The thunder roared with a fury throughout the throne room in response to Zeus' anger. The King of the Gods flickered into his god form. His eyes glowed a brilliant, electric blue, and he stood up.

"Athena has defied my orders?"

Dionysus did not respond out of fear. The thunder receded and Zeus slowly regained his composure, though lightning continued to flicker around him.

"I want everyone in the throne room," Zeus commanded. "Now!"

[LINEBREAK]

Artemis eyed Percy carefully. Back on the glacier, she hadn't noticed how weak he appeared to be. Up close and away from the battle, however, revealed Percy's appearance to her. He wasn't exactly transparent, but it looked almost as though Artemis could see right through him.

"I'm sorry," whispered Percy as they flew on Artemis' sleigh towards New York. "I never wanted to leave you again."

Artemis nodded. "I know. Thalia and Zoe explained what happened."

"Can you forgive me?"

"I..." Artemis hesitated. "This is the second time I've lost you. I hadn't seen you in centuries, and just as I get you back, you let yourself die."

Percy sighed. "I know, and I know that there is nothing I can say to make up for that. But I'm back now, and I won't leave you again."

"How can you promise me that?" asked Artemis. Moon light shimmered in her eyes as tears formed. While normally she preferred to portray herself as a child, she currently showed herself as a young woman in her twenties matching Percy's appearance.

"I'm a god again," Percy explained. "Fully god, and I've seen my fate. _Our_ fate. I won't leave you again."

Artemis looked at him carefully, studying his eyes looking for any flicker of doubt. "Our fate?"

Percy nodded with a soft smile. "The Fates have tied our lives together from now on."

"So now I'm stuck with you for good?" Artemis tried to sound snarky, but the smile on her face ruined her tone. Percy smiled widely knowing that things were good between them.

"It broke my heart when you died," Artemis said sincerely.

"And it broke my heart being away from you," Percy responded. "When I was trapped in the sky, I spent every day watching over you."

"Creep," Artemis joked, but placed her hand on his arm to show that she was truly comforted by that. "How did you return?"

"That," Percy sighed, "is a long story. You see, when I died fighting Kronos, my spirit began the long process of reforming."

Artemis' eyes grew wide. "You mean-"

Percy nodded. "When I turned 16, I regained my full godhood. I wasn't mortal at all anymore. When you sent my spirit into the sky, it clashed against the reformation process."

"What did I do?" Artemis looked mortified.

"My soul was shattered," Percy said quietly. Tears began to stream down her face. Percy wiped them away and pulled her into his embrace. "Erebus, though, helped me find a way to piece my soul back together. In order to be reformed, I need the ichor of eight different beings. Thanatos was the seventh."

Artemis sniffed and looked up at him. "Who is the eighth?"

"Zeus," Percy said firmly.

"Is that why we are headed to Olympus?" asked Artemis confused. "I thought you said that you were going to retake your throne."

"It'll be explained when we arrive," Percy said softly. "But as soon as I obtain the last of the ichor, I will be fully reformed, and I can finally be of some use in this new war against Gaea."

Artemis nodded. She reached up and caressed his bearded face. She leaned up and kissed him softly.

"I love you," she whispered against his lips.

"I love you too," Percy whispered back. The kiss was passionate and filled with emotion. After thousands of years of being separated, and then being separated again after such a quick reunion had been weighing heavily on the both of them. They pulled apart only when it was necessary to breathe. Percy rested his forehead against hers. Her auburn hair framed her face, and Percy could not resist running his fingers through it. "I don't blame you, my love."

Artemis looked into his eyes. "I will make it up to you."

Percy pulled back and smiled. "I know you will. For now though, let us rest. Things are about the change, and I'm not sure yet if it'll be for the better."

Artemis turned herself around and rested her head on Percy's shoulder. The stress and pain of having been captured and tortured seeped out of her body. She relaxed and let out a soft sigh. Percy knew better than to ask her if she was feeling better. Artemis hated being asked that question; instead, he wrapped his arm around her, and they fell quiet as a lunar glow enveloped them. It was a full moon, and the mortal scholars could not fathom why.

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"Artemis," whispered Percy nudging the sleeping goddess awake. "It's time."

The moon goddess did not need more prodding. She sat up looked around. She hadn't meant to fall asleep. As a god sleep wasn't necessary, but there was something so relaxing about being with Percy that had just coaxed her to sleep. She stood up in her sleigh and looked at the horizon. New York City was just barely in sight, and dawn was breaking. Thunder boomed in the distance.

"They've all missed you," Artemis said. Percy shrugged and closed his eyes. Golden armor that Artemis had never seen appeared on him.

"Today will mark a change in Olympus, Artemis," Percy said seriously. "If we want to survive this war with Gaea, I am going to have to take charge. I doubt Zeus will step down easily."

Artemis placed a hand on his shoulder. "If it comes down to it, you'll have me on your side. Poseidon and Hades will be as well."

Percy smiled at her. "I appreciate it. It has been a very long time since I've felt the reassurance of having you by my side in battle."

Artemis smiled back.

"Speaking of battle, where did you get this armor?"

Percy looked down at the golden armor. "It was a gift from Odin."

"As in the Norse god?" asked Artemis confused. "They exist?'

Percy nodded. "We are not the only pantheon around, Arty."

Artemis glared at him at the nickname.

"The Egyptian gods are very much alive as well," Percy continued. Artemis' eyes widened, but she hit Percy on the shoulder.

"Don't call me Arty."

"Alright," Percy said. "Arty."

Artemis grabbed him by the ear and pulled him down to look her in the eyes. "I said do not call me Arty."

Percy rolled his eyes but nodded. "Fine, fine. No need to get so touchy. We're here anyways."

Artemis let go of his ear but did not stop glaring. She grabbed the reigns to her sleigh and guided them to the stable on Olympus. A few minor gods and nymphs eyed them curiously, but at the sight of the man-hating goddess with an imposing male figure, they immediately began gossiping. Artemis growled and made to storm towards them when Percy placed his hand on her shoulder.

"Now is not the time," he said. "We have business to attend to."

Artemis said nothing but let Percy guide her away from the stables and towards the throne room. Overhead, thunder clouds were forming and lightning began to strike. Zeus was angry, but Artemis was not sure why. She hadn't been on Olympus for quite sometime now. Whatever it was, she was certain that Zeus was not expecting Percy.

[LINEBREAK]

"You called me, father," said Athena as she walked into the throne room. She glanced around and noticed that she was the last one to arrive. Aside from Artemis of course.

Zeus stared down at Athena with disdain. "Sit, Athena."

Athena hesitated but did as she was told. Everyone remained quiet, unsure of what could have made Zeus so furious.

"Athena," Zeus said, "you disobeyed my direct order. You left Olympus."

"That is what this is about?" asked Athena incredulously. "They needed our help with Enceladus. He was born to _oppose_ me! It was the wise thing to do."

"You disobeyed my orders!" Zeus yelled. Thunder blasted in the sky.

"Zeus, why are you so angry?" asked Poseidon. "She did what she needed to do."

Athena looked shocked that Poseidon would support her, but she nodded at him with gratitude.

Zeus glared at his brother. "It's the matter of it all! There is a reason Olympus is closed off to the world. I have forbidden any of you from leaving Olympus or Atlantis or the Underworld, and I expect you to obey!"

Poseidon stood up to his godly height and slammed the butt of his trident into the ground. "I'm sick of this attitude of yours, _brother._ We've gone along with your plans for months now but no more!"

"You dare defy me?" hissed Zeus. "You dare commit treason?"

"I stand by, Poseidon," said Hades standing up from his throne. "You have lost your mind, Zeus."

Zeus' face turned bright red, and he began to shake violently. Thunder boomed louder than ever, and lightning illuminated the throne room blindingly. His lightning bolt appeared in his hand. "You will regret this day."

Hades and Poseidon drew their weapons, and the rest of the Olympians watched in a stupor from their thrones. The Big Three stared each other down. The air was stale with ozone, salt, and death. Zeus stepped down from his throne and pulled his arm back to throw his lightning bolt when the entire throne room shook. The three brothers lost their balance and fell to the ground losing their weapons. The other Olympians watched in shock and awe, completely confused as to what had happened. The three stood back up as quickly as they could and grabbed their weapons.

"Poseidon!" roared Zeus angrily. The god of earthquakes shook his head.

"It wasn't me," Poseidon said confused.

Zeus glared at him. "Then who as it?"

"It was me," came a voice from the entrance to the throne room. Everyone gasped as they turned to look at who it was. A large figure covered in brilliant, golden armor strode into the throne room. He walked with power and confidence directly towards Zeus. The god of lightning paled and unconsciously shrank back to a human height as another figure draped in silver entered the throne room as well.

"Gabriel," Zeus whispered. The Olympians were too shocked to react. Their long lost savior was finally back, but he did not look pleased.

"It's Percy now," Percy said as he glared at Zeus. "You know why I am here."

"I-I don't know what you're talking about," Zeus said.

"Yes, you do, Zeus. I'm here to cleanse Olympus of your taint."

"You can't do that!" Zeus shouted. "You gave me this throne! We are brother!"

Poseidon and Hades shared a look. Zeus had never seemed so disoriented or inferior. Ever.

"You are no brother of mine," Percy sneered. "You have defiled this throne, and you have betrayed us all."

"What are you talking about, Percy?" asked Athena. "Yes Zeus has been unhinged as of late, but I wouldn't say he's betrayed us."

"Ask Zeus."

"What is he talking about, Zeus?" asked Poseidon. Zeus glanced around at each of the Olympians. Dionysus looked at him fearfully.

"I-I have no idea."

"If you don't tell them, I will," said Percy. He looked at the others. "Zeus has been allying himself with Gaea."

The Olympians gasped and rose, weapons in hand.

"Is this true?" asked Artemis from behind Percy. Zeus shuffled backwards towards his throne. Percy walked up to him drawing his sword.

"Stay back!" Zeus said, holding up his lightning bolt. "I did what I had to do. For Olympus!"

"You've betrayed us all," Percy said once more, "and I have returned to take back my place as the King of Olympus."

Zeus sneered and grew back to his godly height. "Take back your throne then. Gaea is being reborn, and when she does, Olympus will fall."

Percy snarled and went to lunge at Zeus when the god of lightning disappeared from the throne room with a flash. A second later, he was followed by Dionysus.

"What the Hades just happened?" Poseidon yelled. He looked at Hades abashedly. "Sorry." Hades waved him off.

"Percy," said Athena, "we're glad you're back. We really are, but what is going on? Has Zeus really betrayed us?"

Percy said nothing but moved towards the middle throne. He turned towards the room and sat down. Golden light erupted from his throne and bathed the entire room. The room shook and the sound of trumpets and horns blasted in the sky. The Olympians could only look on in awe. Percy's golden eyes glowed with power and looked around. One by one they all kneeled before him.

"You need not bow to me," Percy said. His voice echoed with power. "Olympus will no longer be a tyranny, and I will not treat you all as Zeus has treated you. He has betrayed us and so have many others."

"So what?" asked Ares. "Are we finally at war?"

The Olympians made to quiet the god of war, but Percy nodded.

"Yes, Ares," he said. "We are at war, and each one of you must prepare. Gaea will come at us with power and an army the world has never seen. Hermes, gather the Greeks, and Hera, gather the Romans. If we want to survive, we will need both camps to work together."

"And what of the rest of us?" asked Poseidon as Hermes and Hera left. Percy sat back in his throne.

"For now, we feast. I have been away for quite sometime, and I am hungry."

The gods smiled and left the throne room for the banquet hall eager to celebrate Percy's grand-albeit strange-return. Artemis waited till the rest left before she walked up to Percy.

"I never expected this," she said. Percy stood and embraced her.

"When I was in the sky, there were moments when I could not see or hear Zeus. I had my suspicions, but I wasn't sure until Zeus admitted everything just now."

"You mean this was all a gamble?"

Percy nodded. "But it paid off."

"You didn't get his ichor."

"There will be other chances. The war has only just begun." He kissed her softly. "Let's eat. I wasn't lying about being hungry."

They walked through Olympus towards the banquet hall. Sounds of merriment and music filled Percy with joy. He had missed this greatly. Artemis placed a comforting hand on his arm and smiled at him knowingly.

"Percy!" the gods said as Percy and Artemis walked in. "Artemis too!"

They raised their glasses of nectar and surrounded the two.

"So glad you're both back!"

"Percy where were you?"

"Why did you kill yourself?"

They asked question after question, but Percy did not mind. They were his family, and he loved them dearly. Enormous quantities of food appeared on the table, and so they all sat down to eat. As they ate and drank, Percy regaled them with his story of his fight with Kronos, his encounter with Erebus, and his experience with Odin and Heimdall. The Olympians gasped and laughed and cried at all the right moments, and when Apollo began to recite his "happy haiku," Artemis locked eyes with Percy.

"I love you," she mouthed. Percy smiled.

Miles away, Zeus stood in his chariot in the sky overlooking the Greek base near Kansas City. He glared down at the sight of Greeks and Romans gathering their dead and mourning together. Everything had been ruined. His lightning bolt appeared in his hand, and he reared his arm back. With a powerful throw, the bolt flew through the sky before striking the base. The blast was enormous, and Zeus smiled at the sight. Now there were fewer enemies for him to worry about. His smile still in place, Zeus flew off to meet Dionysus. They had an appointment with Gaea, and she was not merciful to those that were late.

 **A/N: short chapter, but it was a necessary filler. I hope you liked this chapter. It wasn't my favorite, but as I said, it is necessary for the plot.**

 **As always, thank you to those that favorited, followed, and reviewed. You guys are awesome! If you haven't yet, hit that favorite/follow button and leave a review! Until next time!**

 **(unedited chapter)**


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